


The Adventure of the Diabolical Box

by huhu_lene_gz



Series: Professor Soot and Assistant Innit [2]
Category: Layton Kyouju Series | Professor Layton Series, Minecraft (Video Game), Video Blogging RPF
Genre: Fundy - Freeform, Gen, Mild Angst, Mystery, Professor Layton - Freeform, Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box, Tubbo - Freeform, because tommy and wilbur are in it, no need to know professor layton to read, puzzle, rated t for cursing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-12
Updated: 2021-02-12
Packaged: 2021-03-12 00:54:08
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 12
Words: 29,139
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29376693
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/huhu_lene_gz/pseuds/huhu_lene_gz
Summary: Dear Wilbur,How are you doing? As for me, I’m doing fine. In fact, I think I’m on my way to making the greatest find of the century!I have managed to obtain the elusive Elysian Box, you see. A box which kills people when it is opened. Upon hearing about a mystery like that, no doubt I had done all that I can to secure the box within my grasp. Now, I am on the cusp of a grand archaeological discovery, and I’d like to inform you of it.A re-telling of Professor Layton and the Diabolical Box starring Wilbur as Layton and Tommy as Luke.
Relationships: Wilbur Soot & TommyInnit
Series: Professor Soot and Assistant Innit [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2158050
Comments: 5
Kudos: 15





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Disclaimer! NOTHING in this fic belongs to me. Not the plot, characters, puzzles. I wholeheartedly advise suspension of disbelief for this! Also, the characters who are not MCYT are from the actual game itself.
> 
> I've included the game's OST to accompany the fic in hyperlinks (words that are underlined) if you wanna listen to them! 
> 
> Most of the answers for the puzzles will be revealed right after the puzzle has been written out so be careful! For puzzles involving pictures pls right-click the image to open it in a new tab! 
> 
> Solutions for the are released at the very end of the fic (it'll take a while to get the fic up so anyone who sees only 1 chap for this pls wait for a couple of minutes thank you!)

[ _Dear Wilbur,_ ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDyT-msFFCg)

_How are you doing? As for me, I_ _’_ _m doing fine. In fact, I think I_ _’_ _m on my way to making the greatest find of the century!_

 _I have managed to obtain the elusive Elysian Box, you see. A box which kills people when it is opened. Upon hearing about a mystery like that, no doubt I had done all that I can to secure the box within my grasp. Now, I am on the cusp of a grand archaeological discovery, and I_ _’_ _d like to inform you of it._

_Naturally, I cannot hope to put you in any danger, and thus I regret that I cannot invite you to this momentous occasion. Should I live to tell the tale, rest assured that you would be the first to know about the secrets it holds within._

_If you do not hear from me within a day of this email, I humbly request of you to head down to my office to collect what remains of me. The door is locked, but I have concealed a key beneath the mat._

_I look forward to hearing your reply. Hopefully before my possible demise._

_Sam Nook_

Tommy hands the phone back to Wilbur, who shoves it into his coat pocket.

“The Elysian Box, huh? It’s a fancy name.”

“Indeed it is,” Wilbur says, nodding, folding his arms as the bus trundles along the busy road. The sun’s rays scorch the asphalt on this hot summer’s day. Despite the blazing heat, all manner of people are up and about – groups of tourists gather around quaint cafés and homely boutiques. Two boys race each other on bicycles, weaving between other pedestrians. An elderly woman, sunglasses perched on her nose, hobbles along the road, walking stick tapping the ground.

“What does ‘Elysian’ mean, Wilbur?”

“Something to do with Heaven, or a utopia.”

“But this box kills everyone who opens it, apparently.”

Wilbur shakes his head. “That remains to be seen, Tommy.”

The bus pulls up to their stop and the two pay the fare as they alight. Tommy glances around. He has never been to this part of London. It is peaceful, a row of houses lining a side street leading up to a grand condominium, boasting white walls that shimmer, the blue-tinted windows glinting invitingly. That seems to be their destination, from the surety of Wilbur’s strides in that direction.

The guard post is manned by a gruff man chewing on a donut, crumbs caught on the curly hairs of his beard. He’s dressed in a baggy, black uniform, luminous strips of white painting his shoulders. He swallows effortfully, chugging down from his water bottle upon noticing their approach.

“Excuse me,” Wilbur says, ducking his head to face the man through the tiny window. “I was invited by my friend Sam Nook, who lives here…”

“Nook, eh? I know the fella,” the guard say. “Yeah, he did mention something about expecting someone. You Wilbur Soot?”

“I am.”

“Then you should be able to solve this puzzle. That’s what Nook said,” the guard slides a piece of paper and photograph over to them across the counter. Tommy peers over Wilbur’s shoulder. The photograph depicts several windows, each one corresponding to a different apartment.

[ ** <Puzzle: Nook ** ** ’ ** ** s Home> ** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcs066Q4rvU)

The handwriting on the piece of paper is far from neat, but it is still legible.

“‘In the morning, I often wake up to the sound of music drifting in from a nearby flat. Looking out, I spy a flag fluttering gently outside my window. I take a single sip of my tea and turn my attention to the morning sun.’” Tommy cocks his head. “Huh?”

“Oh, it’s this one, of course,” Wilbur says, stabbing a finger at one of the apartment windows.

The guard nods approvingly. “Well, that speed does prove that you’re the real deal. I’m guessing you know where he lives in now?”

Tommy turns towards the condominium, scanning the walls for the window that they had identified. Thanking the guard, Wilbur makes his way into the condominium grounds, towards the elevator that would take them up to Sam Nook’s apartment.

*

[“Sam?](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7t2AMjtVv28) Are you in there, Sam?”

Wilbur’s hollow knocks go unanswered. The few silent minutes that follow are torturous. Tommy purses his lips. Can the rumours of the Elysian Box be true? Did Sam Nook…

“Tommy,” Wilbur says, jerking his chin at the mat. “Key.”

Tommy bites back a sharp-tongued retort. Now’s not the time for one of his teasing remarks. For all they know, Wilbur’s friend could be dead, fallen victim to the curse of the Elysian Box. Tommy flips the mat over, turning his head at a clink against the ground. The key is a little bronze thing, jagged teeth poking into Tommy’s skin as he fumbles with it.

He tosses it to Wilbur, who unlocks the door with one swift turn. It swings open easily, and the scene before them is anything unlike what Tommy has ever seen before.

The room is surrounded by relics of ages past, preserved archaeological antiquities lined on his shelves and walls. An imposing skeletal structure of what must be a prehistoric beast hangs from the ceiling from wires, glaring down at them with soulless sockets. A single white curtain flutters in the zephyrs breezing through the open window along with the torn remains of its sibling.

[A lone](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZWXHK0s5Dg) man lies sprawled on the floor, belly to the leopard-print carpet. His arm is outstretched, as if attempting to grab something out of reach. 

“Sam!” Wilbur runs forward, nearly tripping on a raised floorboard. He is by his friend’s side in an instant, shaking his shoulders violently. “Tommy, call the police!”

Tommy grips his phone with trembling hands, dialling for the police as quickly as he can. He speaks briefly with the attending officer, with more expletives than he’d have liked streaming from his mouth, before concluding the call.

“I can’t feel a pulse,” Wilbur says, breathless, forehead wrinkled, still bent over Sam’s unmoving body. “How long’d the police said they’d take?”

“About…three minutes,” Tommy says, sighing and running his fingers through his hair. “Wilbur, what are we going to do? Is the Box’s curse real?” All logic dictates against it, because how can opening a Box lead to death?

But here they see, in the flesh, one of the Box’s victims. Tommy resists the urge to bite his nail.

Wilbur’s continuous efforts to revive Sam end in failure. Tommy scrutinizes the room. If the rumours are true, then Sam should have the Box somewhere, right? Did he take a tumble when he opened the Box? Did it fall somewhere?

A preliminary investigation of his desk, of the floor, yields nothing. The Box is, somehow…gone. As soon as he picks himself up from a squat does the door open once more, a familiar face accompanied by a less-than-recognisable one.

Tommy knows that face. He’s seen this guy before.

“Hey! It’s you!” Tommy cries, stalking over to the familiar face. “What the hell are you doing here?”

Bad blinks. “First of all, language. Sec-”

“I knew it! It’s fucking Fundy!”

“Languag-” Before Bad can finish his sentence, Tommy launches himself at him, fingers grabbing at his face and pulling at his cheeks. The other man standing by the door fishes out his phone, camera pointed at them.

“Tommy! What the fuck are you doing?” Wilbur cries. Tommy is yanked away from the Inspector, still growling like a wild animal.

“Wilbur! That’s the guy who nearly killed us the last time!”

“Tommy!” Wilbur snaps, the unconcealed frustration on his face has Tommy shutting his mouth immediately. He stops struggling, and Wilbur releases him. “This one is the real deal, as much as you hate to admit it.”

“Look, I don’t know what kind of game you’re playing, but I’ll let that slide just this once,” Bad huffs, looking extremely unhappy. His companion unsuccessfully stifles his grin behind his hand. “Are you two the ones that found the body?”

“Yes,” Wilbur says. “The door was locked before we entered. When we came in, there remained only Sam’s corpse on the ground.”

“I see, I see.” Bad thumbs at his chin. “Then I suppose that he must have sustained a heart attack.”

“why’d you say that?” Tommy asks.

“Because first of all, there’s no blood,” Bad says. “No blood, no sign of a struggle…The only reasonable conclusion is that Nook himself looked up at that” – he gestures to the skeleton of the dinosaur dangling from the ceiling – “and got the shock of his life. Then, he must have sustained a heart attack.”

“With all due respect, Inspector,” Wilbur says, voice tight, “I don’t think that Sam was killed by any natural phenomena, for a murderer.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Bad’s assistant pipes up from where he’s standing guard by the door. “

“Yesterday, Sam emailed me regarding his newest discovery: the Elysian Box.”

“The Elysian Box?” Bad repeats.

“It’s a Box that kills everyone who opens it,” Tommy supplies.

“And in the email, Sam mentioned that he was going to…” Wilbur swallows. “He was going to open it. He told me that he would. And he did, so this…”

Tommy flashes his friend a concerned gaze. He’s never seen Wilbur quite this out of sorts.

“Mr…”

“Soot. Wilbur Soot.”

“Mr Soot,” Bad says, folding his arms. “Surely you don’t expect me to believe that. Besides, even if I do, then shouldn’t the victim have the Box on him?”

“Oh! That’s right…” Wilbur surveys the room, eyes searching for the Box. Tommy shakes his head. No matter how he searched, he could not locate it.

“There _is_ no Box, Mr Soot,” Bad says, sighing. He gestures at his assistant.

“Skeppy, you’re taking notes, right?”

Bad’s assistant blinks blinks.

“On it.”

Oh, so his assistant’s name is Skeppy. Tommy recalls having seen that name some time ago…Exactly where, he’s forgotten. Skeppy retrieves a pen and a notebook from his satchel and scribbles noisily against the paper.

“But it must be here,” Wilbur says, sounding lost. He stands by Sam’s desk, away from his body. “It _has_ to be. There’s no reason…”

“Wilbur, the Box isn’t here. I searched the place,” Tommy says, grabbing his shoulder in an attempt to calm his friend’s nerves. Wilbur is understandably rattled right now, but panicking will not serve them well in a situation like this.

When Tommy takes a step back to consider the case, it’s strange how it has mysteriously disappeared from the room. The door had been locked – no one could have entered – and Sam claimed to have the Box just before his demise. It had to have been in the room.

There is only one way that it could have left: And that is that someone must have swung by the apartment and stolen it. How had they done it, though? How had they entered and left? Were they there with Sam when he had opened the Box? No, not possible, since Sam mentioned that he was opening it by himself, and that Wilbur would be the first to know of his findings.

“What’s this?”

Bad is standing by the window, gesturing to a length of torn curtain, drifting in the gentle caress of the summer breeze. Skeppy looks up from scrawling in his jotter book.

Does that torn curtain have anything to do with the thief? And the possible murderer?

“Someone escaped through the window,” Wilbur says, motioning to a chain of white, bundled cloth knotted tightly to the windowsill, the abused curtain draped over the edge of the condominium wall, long enough to reach the ground from the third floor.

“No way,” Tommy cries. “That’s insane!”

“Then someone must have come through the window, murdered the poor researcher, and vanished back through it.” Bad hums in contemplation.

“There’s something here too.”

Skeppy holds something in his hands, ripped pieces of a photograph clustered together, depicting something brown, but is otherwise indecipherable. It may contain a crucial clue. Tommy snatches at it, but Skeppy must have the same idea, because he drops the pieces into his pocket with a knowing smirk on his face.

“We’ll be taking that,” Skeppy says. “It’s evidence, after all.”

“Yeah, and we’re going to need you to leave the premises,” Bad says, turning to Wilbur and Tommy. “We can’t have any civilians here messing up the crime scene more than you already have.”

Wilbur and Tommy exchange glances, but they know right there and then that they are beat. Wilbur steps out of the apartment, his hands stuffed in his pockets. A sense of déjà vu flashes across Tommy’s mind.

“Was Sam Nook really killed by the Box, Wilbur?” Tommy asks. Wilbur possesses a keen instinct for things like these. Someone entered the apartment between when Sam had sent the email and when they found his body. Had they a hand in the murder, or was his death truly caused by the Elysian Box?

[“Only](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDyT-msFFCg&) one way to find out,” Wilbur says, holding up a slip of glossy paper. It’s a ticket with a hole punched into it.

“Where’d you get that?”

“It was in Sam’s pocket,” Wilbur says. “I nicked it when neither the Inspector nor his assistant were looking.”

“That’s sneaky of you.”

“Thanks. I try,” Wilbur says, letting out a drawn-out sigh.

Tommy isn’t sure what to say or do. He’s never had someone close to him suffer such a horrible fate before. Should he console Wilbur or is it best to distract him from his thoughts? In any case, they have a most peculiar mystery on their hands right now. Where had the Box gone, and what were its secrets that Sam had so desperately tried to uncover from putting himself at such risk?

“So, what’s the ticket for?” Tommy asks.

“A prestigious railway,” Wilbur says. “The Molentary Express. Have you heard of it?”

“No. I’m not as well-read…as _learned_ as you, Wilbur.”

Wilbur chuckles. The elevator’s doors open with a ding and the duo steps in. Humour is no remedy for grief, but at least it keeps Wilbur’s spirits high enough for him to focus on the matter at hand. The only way he can really obtain some closure for Sam’s death is to research into what he had given his life up for, and Tommy is willing to help him every step of the way if that’s what Wilbur needs.

“You think the Molentary Express has something to do with the Elysian Box?” Tommy asks, hoping to fill the uncomfortable silence of the elevator.

“Possibly,” Wilbur says. “The fact that I found it in his pocket in mint condition probably means that Sam was still in the same clothes that he had been in when he went to that location printed on the ticket. Remember the email, Tommy? He’s told us that he is opening the Box as soon as he laid his hands on it.”

“Wow. You know I can never catch up to your massive brain, Wilbur.”

Wilbur visibly glows. “Flattery gets you nowhere, Tommy Innit. Now, let us depart. We have train tickets to book.”

“It’s expensive, innit? I don’t think my mother would be very happy about it.”

“I’ll be paying for the both of us.” Wilbur sniffs. “Did you seriously think that I expected a _child_ to pay for his own train ticket for the Molentary Express?”

“Yeah, well…I mean…”

“I’ll let you know the details,” Wilbur says. “And I _would_ need to speak with your mother.”

*

That is exactly how Tommy finds himself at the ticket gates the next Sunday, jostling for space with other commuters on the crowded platform. He doesn’t remember the last time he’s come out here to this impressive station, the last time he’s experienced the thrill of a trip. He spots all sorts of unusual characters boarding the Molentary Express. A plump woman wrapped in a red gown, cuddles a poodle to her chest. A young boy wearing a headscarf and sunglasses and…is that Inspector Bad and Skeppy?

“Tommy. This way.”

Wilbur beckons him over to the door which they should be boarding from. Tommy hauls his luggage up the steps and the two of them lug their baggage down the narrow carpeted corridor till they find their cabin in the third car.

Tommy can hardly believe his eyes when he is greeted with a spacious cabin and the wafting aroma of sweet-smelling roses. There are two couches, a coffee table between them and windows stretching from the floor to the ceiling that can afford them a grand view of the countryside scenery.

“What the fuck! This is incredible!” Tommy abandons his luggage by the door, moving to throw himself onto the bouncy couch, immediately squashing the cushions beneath his weight. Wilbur wrestles with both their luggage cases, placing them in a corner where they wouldn’t roll about.

“It is,” Wilbur says with a grunt, “though I’d really appreciate it if you’d help me with these.”

“Oh. Sorry.” Tommy hops off the couch, but Wilbur is already done securing the luggage. Just then, the train’s horn whistles shrilly, signalling the beginning of their journey. Tommy watches as the train moves out from the station, chugging loudly as it goes.

It’s been far too long since they’d gone on an adventure, and truth to be told, Tommy has been buzzing with excitement the whole week, ever since that terrible tragedy that had befallen Wilbur’s friend Sam Nook.

Just what kind of journey awaits them this time?


	2. The Legendary Molentary Express

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> aboard the molentary express

“Have you heard of this one, Tommy?” Wilbur says, looking up from his papers where he seems to be reading an article on education in England. Tommy knows exactly what to expect when he hears those words. Wilbur is up to one of his puzzle-y moods again.

Tommy doesn’t miss the lack of a usual sparkle in his eyes, though. “No, I don’t think so.”

[ ** <Puzzle: Red Caps> ** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcs066Q4rvU&)

“Well, imagine this. There is an elementary school teacher who teaches a class of ten, right. Well, they place an unknown number of red and blue caps on their heads and none of the children knows the colour of their own caps.

“Then, she tells them, ‘Those who see four or more red caps, will receive a red balloon, and those who don’t will receive a blue balloon.’ Knowing that not every child received a red balloon, how many children got a red balloon?”

“This is hard, Wilbur. What if I don’t like the colour red and I got a red balloon, hmm?”

“Well, you can choose to swap with someone who has a blue balloon, I suppose.”

Tommy frowns at the lack of bite in his words. “Well, there’s gotta be… um…” He fumbles for his words, unable to meet Wilbur’s expectant gaze. “There’s…gotta be…six people got a red balloon, right?”

“Not bad,” Wilbur says, nodding.

[Tommy](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RR8_BMN68Ok) puffs his chest out. He’s a big man, and big men never gets puzzles wrong. It’s just not in his blood. He stands abruptly, stretching and relieving his muscles of their horrible stiffness.

“Can we go explore the train, Wilbur? I don’t want to rot away in this cabin for hours.”

Wilbur glances at his phone. “Lunch is almost upon us. We should, at least, check out their dining car.”

Tommy beams. Food always excites him. He throws open the door to their cabin and stride out, breathing in the fresh scent of roses. Man, the people on this train really have a thing for roses, don’t they? Wilbur locks the door behind them.

“Why’s there a lock over this one?” Tommy asks, gesturing to the door leading to car number two. Perhaps they should check it out to see how the rich live. Unfortunately, the door appears to be locked with a set of strange symbols.

“Those millionaires won’t fraternize with us plebeians, Tommy,” Wilbur says. “Come on, the lunch car’s this way.”

“What? You memorised the train’s layout already?”

Wilbur raises a brow in amusement. “Not exactly, but with that car blocked off, the lunch car can’t possibly be that way, can it?”

Tommy mutters under his breath, lamenting Wilbur’s cleverness (Tommy’s a big man. He’s not dumb. Wilbur’s just exceptionally smart.). The next car looks identical the one they emerged from, covered in the same green walls, gold and silver arching against the ceilings. The scenery passes them by in a blend of green pastures and blue skies framed by lime curtains. A train attendant wishes them well as she strides towards the other car.

By the time the duo reaches the dining car, the place is already packed like sardines. His eyes bulge at the sheer portions of the food; these dishes must not come cheap. He would only have the chance to dine like this on special occasions. Then again, this _is_ the Molentary Express, priding themselves on top-tier service.

“Might you be here for lunch, sirs?” a waiter asks. He is dressed in a suit and tie, tea towel draped over his arm. His accent is somewhat strange. Is he Scottish, by any chance? “May I see your cardkeys?”

Wilbur acquiesces to the request. The waiter bows and leads them further into the dining car, heading straight towards the lone, vacant table amidst the occupied ones…

“No!”

Someone shoves Tommy aside rudely. He catches a glimmer of red out of the corner of his eye, watching a woman plop herself down comfortably into their table. He recognizes her blindingly red gown – she is the woman who sashayed onto the train earlier with her dog. She certainly runs fast, but Tommy can’t say much about her manners.

“Excuse me,” she says, coughing into her hand. “I believe that I should be served first, not a couple of _commoners_.”

Rage boils Tommy’s blood. Who the fuck is she to be calling them commoners, of all things? Wilbur Soot, accomplished archaeology professor, has probably achieved more than she ever could in her lifetime. He is about to stride up to give her a piece of his mind when Wilbur holds up a hand.

“It’s quite alright,” he says, probably unwilling to cause a scene, being the gentleman that he is. “Perhaps we could come back later.”

The waiter looks almost dismayed, but he schools his expression and bows, thanking them for their godly understanding. He suggests that, in the meantime, they check out the observation deck at the very last car, promising a fantastic view and a place to sit and relax for a while.

“Come on, Tommy. Some relaxing scenery would calm your nerves.”

“Coming.” Tommy shoots the woman one last scathing glare, radiating unmatched annoyance when he realizes that she is not even looking. He hurries after Wilbur, the latter having already moved to the next car.

*

When the duo arrives at the observation deck, Tommy is somewhat surprised to find someone already there. He’s rather short, a moss-coloured fedora perched on his head, fingers tight around his walking cane.

He spins on his heels at their approach. His weathered face is aged, hands wrinkled. However, he appears more distinguished than haggard in that pressed suit of his.

“Ah, if it isn’t the famous Professor Soot,” the man says with a toothy smile.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you too, Mr Beluga.” Wilbur returns the greeting. “How are you doing on this fine day?”

“Enjoying the breeze and view, of course.” Mr Beluga’s voice is scratchy and sharp. If Tommy would compare him to an animal, it would be a chattering squirrel. “More importantly, how’s my Molentary Express treating a fine guest such as yourself?”

“The service is fantastic and the décor is lovely,” Wilbur says. “It is impressive how you’ve managed to build this railway from the ground up.”

Mr Beluga chortles. “You can do anything if you put your mind to it.” He brushes past them, surprisingly mobile despite his appearance. “Do have a pleasant day, Professor and…”

“Tommy Innit.”

“Mr Innit,” Mr Beluga says. “Now, I must be off. The railway doesn’t run itself.”

With that, he exits the car, the door swinging shut behind him. Wilbur settles into one of the picnic benches scattered about the deck. Tommy joins him, watching the stretches of emerald and shamrock that they are leaving behind.

“That man was right. It _is_ a good view,” Wilbur says.

They’ve certainly come a long way from London in such a short span of time. The train station hardly visible anymore. Instead, he sees fields where horses and sheep roam freely, having the time of their lives.

Well, if there’s one thing the waiter didn’t inform them, it has to be the powerful drafts that tousle his hair and ruffle his clothes to an awkward extent. Tommy’s constantly smoothing that tuft of hair down, or Wilbur would never let him hear the end of it.

“Tommy?”

“Yes, Wilbur?”

“Have I ever told you about the one about the horses?”

“No, I don’t think you did.” Wilbur’s told him so many puzzles about horses he can’t possibly know which one he’s referring to.

[ ** <Puzzle: Moving Day> ** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcs066Q4rvU)

“So, you have four horses, A, B, C and D, all of which travel at different speeds. One day, you want to bring all your horses from point 1 to point 2. A takes one hour to travel, B takes two hours, C four hours and D six.

“The thing is, Tommy, that you need to ride a horse back to point 1 every time you return to move your other horses. You can only move as fast as the slowest horse you’re travelling with, so what’s the fewest number of hours it will take to move all the horses?”

Oh. Yeah, Tommy’s definitely solved this some time ago. “Um, thirteen hours.”

Wilbur nods. “I told you this before, haven’t I?”

“I am smart, Wilbur. You never ever believed me.”

Wilbur laughs. They do spend quite a while trading puzzles, although it’s mainly Wilbur telling Tommy some of the newer ones he’s encountered, before Wilbur decides it’s time to head back to the dining car. They’ve got a general idea of what the train’s like, save for the restricted cars.

[By the](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RR8_BMN68Ok&) time they return, most of the people have already left and Wilbur and Tommy are greeted by a waitress. They sit at a table by the window, to their left a family of four chatting incessantly over their meal.

Tommy stares long and hard at the menu. He’s never heard of any of these spices, herbs, ingredients…much less the name of the dish itself.

Well, why not just get one of everything?

“Because you’ll bleed my wallet dry, Tommy,” Wilbur huffs, as if reading his mind. “One plate of sandwiches cost fucking seven dollars.”

“I’ll get my mum to pay you.”

Wilbur sighs. “Have you decided what you’re eating?”

“Oh, I’m going to blow you away with my impeccable taste, Wilbur.”

“And the price, probably. You fucking leech.”

Their total comes up to a massive number as Wilbur had predicted, and perhaps, Tommy does feel the least bit guilty for ordering so much, but he’s a growing boy and he needs to eat his fill.

“You need to tell me what you ordered, man,” Wilbur says, slamming the receipt down on the table.

“I ordered whatever you didn’t,” Tommy says. “I thought you were smarter than that.”

Wilbur drags a hand across his face. “I was hoping you’d make my life easier for me.”

[ ** <Puzzle: Tommy’s Big Lunch> ** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcs066Q4rvU)

“Okay, so…” It’s difficult, but Tommy manages to solve a couple of sums in his head. “The total of my order is twice as big as the total of your order.”

“Doing puzzles now, are we?” Wilbur says, squinting at the receipt.

“Well, it’s what you like, innit?”

It barely takes Wilbur a couple of seconds before he’s got the answer down. He mouths the names of the food, nodding to himself as he crumples the receipt and tosses it against the window.

[Soon](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6o96ppnVOF0), their meal arrives, and Tommy has never consumed anything quite so delicious before. It’s a gustatory paradise, the delectable entrée and main course a heavenly combination. He wishes that he can eat forever, because he’d never get tired of eating this…chicken. Roast chicken with mashed potatoes and sauteed vegetables…

Wilbur has barely touched his food, poking listlessly at the plate of salad set in front of him. Tommy purses his lips. What had been a sensual amalgamation of taste turns to sand in his mouth. He’s drowned himself in the beauty of the scrumptious combinations of sourness and salt that he’s completely neglected his friend.

“Hey, Wilbur. Wanna hear a puzzle?”

Wilbur smiles tiredly. “Not now, Tommy. Maybe later.”

Tommy frowns as he slurps up a forkful of pasta. Not in the mood for puzzles? That’s a first, and it’s rather concerning, Tommy thinks. Wilbur’s attention is focused on the cliffs and the crash of the giant resounding waterfall. It’s sparkly and pretty, that’s for sure, but rather melancholy given the dark clouds over his friend’s head.

They finish their meal in awkward silence. Wilbur pays for the food and they decided to head back to their cabin.

However, as soon as they exit the car, they are met with some unexpected circumstances. The insufferable woman from earlier, the one in the scarlet gown, is wailing despondently at poor Inspector Bad and Skeppy, the latter seeming lost in his own world.

[“So,](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RR8_BMN68Ok&) you’re sure you last saw him here,” Bad says.

“Of course! My boy is always with me! Unless he is not!” the woman cries. “Please! You’ve got to find my boy!”

“What seems to be the matter?” Wilbur asks, approaching the trio.

“Oh, hello there, Mr Soot and Mr…Innit,” Bad says with the slightest twitch of his nose. “It’s…We’re conducting an investigation…”

“Have you seen a boy wandering around?” Skeppy asks. “This woman’s kid has gone missing.”

“My name is Babette!” the woman cries. “Get it into that thick skull of yours!”

“Madam, I would prefer if you do not-”

“If you have the time to chit-chat, then spread out and search for my Tom!”

Wilbur has a hand over his mouth, but Tommy doesn’t need X-ray vision to know that he’s trying his hardest to stifle his laughter. Tom? What are the chances? Tommy sighs.

“No, we haven’t seen any…lost boys,” Tommy says. He’s only come across one boy in the whole train and it was that stranger in a headscarf and sunglasses.

“Oh well,” Skeppy says dismissively.

“Mind if we help you search?” Wilbur asks.

“By all means,” Bad says, looking like he’s at his wit’s end. “If you happen to find Tom, give us a holler.”

Bad and Skeppy escort the woman back to her room, assuring her continuously that they’d find her missing boy, leaving Tommy and Wilbur standing in the middle of the car.

“We didn’t see any young boys around, did we?” Tommy says, glancing around. Wilbur shakes his head.

“The only young boy I’m seeing is you,” Wilbur says, gazing out the window. “Then again, we could have missed them. Let’s return to the previous cars and see if we can’t find any clues.”

Tommy agrees. The train has yet to make any stops, so if anything, the woman’s child should still be on the train somewhere. Given that her room is on this side of the train, Tommy can’t imagine that Tom could have wandered over to the restricted car. They should start their search from the first accessible car– which happens to be where their cabin is located.

Moving one car over, Tommy spies something peculiar on the ground that hadn’t been there before. It appears to be a shoe, albeit a ridiculously tiny one. Does this belong to the woman’s child?

“Wilbur, I found something.” Tommy holds up the shoe for his companion to see. Wilbur receives it from him and scrutinizes it.

“If this belongs to Tom, then perhaps we’re looking for a younger child than we imagined,” Wilbur says. “Look, I can barely fit two fingers in here.”

“Maybe the boy has small feet, Wilbur.”

“Still, I don’t think a child’s feet can be _that_ small.” Wilbur slides the shoe into his pocket. If Tom left his shoe in this car, then does that mean that he was wandering here and is now gone?

Just then, the door to the cabin next to theirs swings open, revealing the young boy in the headscarf and sunglasses, hugging a shrimpy dog to his chest. He ducks his head and mutters a quick apology, before rushing off towards the dining car. What a strange little man.

“Let’s head on over to the other cars. Maybe the members of the staff might have seen him.”

*

“I apologise, but I can’t say I’ve seen a young boy around here,” the waiter that had attended to them earlier says, bowing politely. “I could inform the rest of the staff to keep a lookout.”

“We’d appreciate that. Thank you.”

Wilbur and Tommy step away from the restaurant. The waiter is not the first member of staff they’d asked about this, yet none of them seem to have caught sight of a young boy wandering about. Tommy is beginning to question whether this young boy even exists.

“Hey, what’s this?”

Wilbur picks something up from the ground. It appears to be a shoe, one of similar design to the other that they had picked up earlier. Does this belong to Tom as well?

“It’s strange,” Wilbur says, rummaging through his pocket and fishing out the other shoe. “Both shoes are for left feet.”

“Maybe that woman just bought wrong. Or Tom could have two left feet.”

Wilbur hums inquisitively, but lets that statement hang in the air. Well, that joke didn’t land. “I think we have to meet up with both the Inspector and his assistant. Come on.”

Has Wilbur already deduced the location of the boy? It’s not in Tommy’s place to doubt his friend, but with only two mismatched shoes to go off on, it seems a tad difficult even for Wilbur.

They find Inspector Bad and Skeppy in the next car, speaking in hushed tones, holding something in hand. It’s striped with red-and-white, the exact same colours that are characteristic of the two shoes they’ve found.

[“Inspector,”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3gbWiFxMvNU&) Wilbur says, walking up to the duo. Bad snaps to attention and greets them with the grimmest expression Tommy’s seen on him to date.

“Mr Soot,” Bad says, sighing harshly. “I think we’ve lost the boy. He must have fallen off the train.”

“Fallen off the…what?” Tommy’s eyes grow as wide as saucers. “That can’t be right.” How can a child simply fall of a train?

“There’s no other explanation for it,” Skeppy says. “That woman confirmed that she brought her boy on the train, and the train didn’t make any stops or anything, so there’s no way she could have lost him anywhere else.”

“Officer Skeppy, may I ask what that is?” Wilbur asks, gesturing to the article of clothing that Skeppy carries – a small cap. Much too small to fit on a child’s head, Tommy thinks. Upon seeing it, Wilbur’s eyes light up.

“Might I present a theory,” Wilbur says. “We may have had assumed something wrongly from the very beginning.”

“What do you mean?” Bad asks curiously.

“Well, during our investigation, we’ve discovered two shoes that may have belonged to Tom,” Wilbur says. “However, what is most striking about them is that they are to be worn on the same foot.”

He retrieves the shoes from his pocket, holding it out for the Inspector and Skeppy to see. Bad nods in understanding.

“I see where you’re coming from, Mr Soot,” Bad says.

“What? I don’t get it.” Skeppy frowns, and Tommy is somewhat glad that he isn’t the only clueless one here.

“Let’s go over the clues that we’ve uncovered so far,” Wilbur says. “Firstly, we’ve found two shoes that belong to the same foot – the left foot. Not only that, but these shoes are also much too small for the feet of an average toddler; a baby would not have been able to go far. At the same time, Inspector Halo and Officer Skeppy have found a cap that matches the colours of the shoes but appears too small to be worn by a child as well.”

“And that means…what? What does that mean?” Skeppy asks.

“It means you have to use your head a little, you muffinhead,” Bad says, folding his arms.

“It means that the ‘boy’ that the lady was referring to is not human at all. Instead, her little ‘boy’ is none other than an animal. Perhaps, a dog.”

“A dog?” Tommy exclaims. “So we’ve been searching for a dog this whole time?”

“Wait, but she never said that!” Skeppy throws his hands in the air.

“Well…” Tommy can imagine one other person who treats their pet _cat_ like a princess. A shiver runs down his spine as he tries to shake those horrible memories from his head.

“In any case, I suppose we start looking for a dog, then,” Bad says, sighing. “Thanks for your help, Mr Soot. We will let you know if we make any headway.”

“Actually,” Wilbur says, a knowing smile on his face. “I think I know exactly where Tom has gone.”

*

[The](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RR8_BMN68Ok&) observation deck is as windy as ever, ruffling Tommy’s hair as soon as they step out onto the observation deck. There, standing by the railing, is the young boy from earlier, hair still bundled up in his headscarf. His back is to them, the scene the very picture of serenity.

“Excuse me.”

Upon hearing the Wilbur’s voice, the boy, startled, turns around, only for the dog he carries to leap from his arms. It begins to bark and yip as it bolts back towards the train, dancing between Wilbur and Tommy’s feet before rushing back into the car. Bad and Skeppy’s shouts can be heard from within as they, presumably, chase it down.

A sudden gust rips the boy’s scarf from his head, the bright yellow cloth snatched by the unrelenting wind, revealing locks of brown hair.

“Hey, it’s you!” Tommy cries. “What are _you_ doing here?”

Wilbur smiles, approaching the boy who removes his spectacles. “I thought it was you, Tubbo.”

Tubbo pouts, gazing at the ground.

“It’s just…the both of you ditched me back at London,” Tubbo says. He chews on his lip hesitantly. “And I…I didn’t want to be alone again.”

Tommy isn’t quite sure how to respond. On the one hand, he’s a little annoyed, because there’s a reason he and Wilbur left him behind and that’s because wherever they’re headed is going to present unprecedented threats, but on the other hand, he can kind of see where Tubbo is coming from.

“You’re not…mad at me, right?” Tubbo asks, chancing a glance up at them both.

“Well, where we’re going could be quite…dangerous,” Wilbur says, adjusting his coat, “so I’m going to need you to be very careful, alright?”

Tubbo brightens up at that, as happy as a lark. He nods vigorously, all smiles as he follows Wilbur and Tommy back into the train. As they step through the entranceway, a voice thunders from overhead, crackling through the speakers.

“Ladies and gentlemen! We’re reaching the sleepy town of Dropstone! The Molentary Express will be taking a short break there before we continue on our journey to Brighton! Weary guests may exit the train during that time to experience the country sights!”

Tommy’s never heard of Dropstone before but being able to head out and stretch their legs sounds like a good idea.

“How’d you find out about where we were going, by the way?” Tommy asks.

“Well, Wilbur was buying tickets for the Molentary Express one day and left the webpage open,” Tubbo says. “It’s not hard to guess what’s going on when he purchased two.”

“Is that why I lost a substantial amount from my bank account?” Wilbur frowns.

“Um…” Tubbo looks sheepish. “Maybe.”

“And you didn’t tell me anything when I said my account might have gotten hacked!”

“Hey, it’s all good now, isn’t it, big man?” Tommy says. “Now you know the hacker was Tubbo.”

“How’d you even get your hands on my card?”

“You left it lying on the table one day,” Tubbo points out as they pass the dining car. Wilbur groans, cursing his absentmindedness.

“Speaking of which, where’s your room, Tubbo?” Tommy asks.

“The middle one in the third car.”

Wilbur raises a brow. “How amusing that you’ve been staying beside us the whole time and we hadn’t even noticed.”

The train begins to slow to a stop, approaching a lively town surrounded by pastures and barns. Screaming banners and streamers are strung up all around the station, strings of coloured flags and posters plastered on the walls. Wreaths of flowers of all colours give the whole thing a little country touch.

What’s this all about?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Puzzle(s) in this Chapter:  
> Red Caps  
> Moving Day  
> Tommy's Big Lunch


	3. The Country Village of Dropstone

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> dropstone town

[Along](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z5wVNSvl1io) with many other guests, Wilbur, Tommy and Tubbo step off the train, basking in the warm rays of the afternoon sun.

“Ah, Mr Beluga.”

The strange, short man that Wilbur and Tommy had met on their way to the observation deck earlier is standing by the train, greeting each guest as they exit.

“Professor Soot,” Mr Beluga greets in turn, tipping his fedora. “It’s Dropstone’s fiftieth anniversary today. They’ve got a slew of activities lined up for the occasion.”

“We’ll be sure to enjoy ourselves,” Wilbur says. “Lovely weather too.”

“It is.”

“If I’m not wrong, the Molentary Express’ fiftieth anniversary is today, isn’t it?” Wilbur says inquisitively. “What a coincidence.”

Mr Beluga stiffens, almost unnoticeably, and coughs into his hand. “A coincidence indeed. Do have fun, Professor. I have someone else to speak to urgently.”

Before they’ve even taken a few steps, Tommy jolts at an enraged yelling behind him. Whirling around, he finds Mr Beluga shouting at a man in a piece of baggy blue uniform, a microphone in hand. Ah. He’s that train conductor. Tommy remembers seeing him around. He’s really getting grilled; it’s almost painful to listen.

“Come on, Unko! It wasn’t that bad-”

“Bad? No, it wasn’t bad. It was the absolute _worst_.”

Wilbur clears his throat, steering Tommy and Tubbo away from the altercation.

“Let’s get a move on. We might be able to find some clues pertaining to the Elysian Box here,” Wilbur says. Tubbo tilts his head questioningly.

“The Elysian Box?”

“It’s a weird thing,” Tommy says. “Basically, whoever opens the Box will die.”

“What? That’s actually really cool.”

Tommy’s eyes dart to Wilbur, noticing the latter flinching ever so slightly. His lips are tight, eyes staring straight ahead, but he’s not actually looking. Not at the rows of stalls lined up along the main street with carnival games and country food. Not at the ever-shifting crowds of people that flock to them.

“No, it’s not _cool_ ,” Wilbur says. Tubbo swallows uncomfortably, watching as Wilbur strides down the broad road that leads to a giant archway, the town square just beyond that.

“Did I say something wrong?” Tubbo asks quietly.

“Well, um…let’s just say that Wilbur doesn’t like the Elysian Box very much,” Tommy says. He has no time to explain, because Wilbur seems to have dove into the crowd, blending in with the folks dressed in colourful cloths.

“Maybe we should win something from a carnival game and give it to him as an apology present,” Tubbo says.

Tommy hums thoughtfully. “Great idea. Wilbur likes presents. Especially big, stuffed cuddly bears.”

“ _I_ like big, stuffed cuddly bears.”

Tommy gives him a look. “You’re weird.”

“Excuse me. By that notion, doesn’t that mean that Wilbur is weird too.”

“He _is_ weird. I don’t know why you think he isn’t.”

Taking their time to wander around the various stalls, the duo chances upon a stall offering a gargantuan stuffed bee as a prize. It’s not as adorable as a stuffed teddy bear in Tommy’s book, but he can’t very well deny that Tubbo’s eyes are literally sparkling at the prospect of winning one of those.

“How do we play this game, miss?” Tommy asks, approaching the petite woman managing the stall. She looks up from where she’s inspecting her nails, a grin gracing her features as she begins to explain the game to them.

[ ** <Puzzle: The Winning Arrow> ** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcs066Q4rvU&)

The fletching of three arrows can be seen, before part of their shafts are hidden behind a decorative piece of fabric. However, only the tip of one of the arrows emerges from behind the fabric. From it dangles a sachet, scent so strong that it makes Tommy dizzy.

“You just need to take your pick from these three. If you pick the arrow with the sachet, then you win.”

“It has to be this one,” Tubbo says, gesturing at one of the arrows’ fletching. “Right?”

“Really? I thought it’s the other one.”

Tubbo frowns and Tommy returns to scrutinizing the arrows. “Wait, you might be right.”

“We’ll be taking this one, then,” Tubbo says, stabbing a finger at their arrow of choice. The girl giggles and unpins the fabric from the wood. It falls away and Tommy pumps his fists into the air with an excited yell when the outcome is revealed.

[“Congratulations,”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z5wVNSvl1io&) the girl says, retrieving the stuffed bee from where it rests on a shelf behind her. “Here’s your prize!”

Tubbo hugs the stuffed bee to his chest, clearly satisfied. Apology gift in hand, both of them decide to set out to search for Wilbur. Who knows where the man’s gone?

Past the bustling stalls is the town square with significantly fewer people milling about. A fountain stands in its centre, water cascading down into its basin wreathed in beautiful flowers. Behind it looms an intimidating building, its white walls complemented by the darker wood of its roof, window grilles and doorway. A noticeboard splashed with all kinds of paper – torn and yellowing – accompanies the house. This must be the town hall.

Tommy approaches the bespectacled boy seated on the fountain bench, the boy clutching a ratty book in hand.

“Excuse me. Have you seen a really tall man walk past here? He has this brown coat and his hair is all fluffy.”

The boy looks up and blinks, before lowering his gaze and turning his attention back to his book. “Sorry…I’m a little…I’m a little busy…”

“Is that…” Tubbo seems to recognize whatever the boy’s reading. “Is that a puzzle book?”

Puzzles? Again? Tommy can’t ever truly be free of puzzles, even with Wilbur gone, can he?

“Y-Yeah.” The boy looks surprised, pushing the spectacles further up the bridge of his nose. “I’m having a spot of trouble, and…”

“Mind if we take a look? I’d like to consider myself a bit of a puzzle whiz,” Tubbo says. Tommy can imagine. The boy grew up in St. Mystere, after all.

The boy nods, and moves the book such that both Tubbo and Tommy can view its contents:

[ ** <Puzzle: World ** ** ’ ** ** s Best Golfer> ** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcs066Q4rvU&)

“‘A pro golfer has the amazing ability to consistently putt distances of three, five, seven and eleven metres. Strangely enough, those are the only distances he can putt. Currently, our golfer stands on the green with his ball twenty metres from the hole. What’s the fewest number of strokes that he can use to get the ball in?’” Tommy reads.

“‘Assume that if the ball is hit farther than the distance remaining to the hole, it will roll over to the other side without going into the cup.’” The boy finishes.

“Well, um…Isn’t the answer two?” Tubbo says.

“What? Why’s it not three?” Tommy asks. The boy peers up at him with the most confused expression.

Tubbo explains his line of thought, the solution making Tommy want to drown himself in the fountain’s water. He would never have thought of that in a million years.

“That makes sense,” the boy says with a faint smile. “Thanks. You were asking about a tall man?”

[“Yeah.](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z5wVNSvl1io&) Did he pass through here?” Tubbo asks.

The boy points them in the direction of a beaten dirt path that would take them past a few fields of crops, the rest of the town located on the other end of it. Tommy and Tubbo wave goodbye to the boy and leaves him to his puzzles, carrying on their search for Wilbur.

“Over there!” Tommy cries, pointing to a familiar figure in the distance. He and Tubbo begin to sprint, footsteps thumping against the hardened earth, bounding toward their friend. Wilbur seems to be speaking to a woman in a checked dress, an apron strapped to her front.

Upon their approach, Wilbur spins on his heels, recognition dawning on his face. The woman chuckles.

“Are they your sons?”

“I’m not that old,” Wilbur says with a slight frown. “They’re my friends, though I _am_ kind of the godfather to this one.” He pats Tubbo’s head. “I apologize for their callousness….”

“It’s no problem. They’re really lively, just like children should be.”

“I’d like to thank you for the invaluable information as well.”

“Anytime, dear,” the woman says, smiling as she bids the trio a goodbye. “Good luck on your search for Mr Anderson.”

As Wilbur, Tommy and Tubbo step away from the woman’s shop, Tubbo holds out the stuffed bee.

“This is…um…an apology,” Tubbo says, bowing his head. “For whatever I said just now. I believe I offended you, and…”

This is probably the first time Tommy’s seen Wilbur’s eyes quite so wide, the shock reflected within them ever so foreign. He’s rarely caught Wilbur off guard, and by rarely, he means never. Wilbur receives the stuffed bee from Tubbo, squishing it ever so slightly, gratitude expressed softly, but loud enough for Tubbo to hear and grin widely.

“It’s not particularly your fault, and I have to apologize for running off as well,” Wilbur says, sighing and shaking his head. “It’s just been…stressful. It’s no excuse, but…”

“Nah, we get it, big man,” Tommy says. “Everyone has off days.”

“Yeah,” Tubbo says, nodding. “We should go and take part in the festival. There are so many things to do!”

“Perhaps, but there’s a lead I have to chase first,” Wilbur says, eyes shining brightly. At the mention of a lead, both Tommy and Tubbo perk up.

“A lead?” they ask in unison.

“As it turns out, there has been a man pursuing information regarding the Elysian Box as well,” Wilbur says. “And that would be the son of mayor of this town, Mr Anderson.”

“Then let’s go look for him,” Tubbo says, marching forward. “Come on!”

Together, the three of them head back towards the town in search of this elusive Mr Anderson.

*

As per the description of the couple of townspeople they meet along the way, Mr Anderson happens to be judging a livestock competition taking place by the barns. They can’t miss it – it is simply the biggest event, the highlight, of the festival. Following the chitter-chatter of the crowd, the trio finds the barns quickly. They step past the creaky wooden fence, only for Tommy to bump straight into a burly man with a rake in hand.

“Hey! What’s the big idea?” the man cries, his heavy accent rendering his words nearly incomprehensible to Tommy’s ears.

“He’s just a child,” the other man, accent much milder, says placatingly. The man with the rake huffs, glaring daggers at the other guy.

“Pardon us, gentlemen,” Wilbur says, stepping forward. “Have you, by any chance, seen Mr Anderson about?”

“Mr Anderson? Well, maybe I could tell you if you could help me get my cow back!” the man with the rake says, hands on his hips. Tommy sidesteps the swing of that tool. This man is a walking hazard.

“Your cow?”

“He claims that I stole his cows, but I did nothing of the sort,” the calmer man says. He runs his fingers over the fine hairs of the cow beside him, the beast grazing on a patch of grass. The other cows in question are kept in pens, watching them with curious eyes.

“Well, my friend here can speak to animals,” Wilbur says, patting Tommy on the shoulder. “Perhaps he can lend you a hand.”

“W-What? Wilbur!” Tommy whips his head around.

“This is ridiculous! No one can do that!” the man with the rake harrumphs.

“You can though, can’t you, Tommy?” Wilbur interrupts.

Well, Tommy certainly can’t refuse a request like that. If this’ll help them find Mr Anderson quicker, then he’s got no choice but to do as he’s asked of. Tommy grumbles and approaches the cows, watched on by the two men, Wilbur and Tubbo.

[ ** <Puzzle: Misinformootion> ** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcs066Q4rvU&)

“Okay, you bitches,” Tommy says. “Hit me with it.”

Tubbo pads over, seemingly interested in how this goes.

From what Tommy can gather from his preliminary interrogation with the surprisingly-friendly cows, that in order to work out which cows belong to which person, he’d have to first figure out which of them are Troomoo cows, a breed that only tells the truth, and which are Nowhey cows which always lie. Upon asking the farmers, he knows that there are two Troomoos and three Nowhey cows amongst the five, A, B, C, D and E.

“D is a Nowhey, I promise,” A says.

“Oh no, C isn’t a Troomoo cow,” B says.

“A ain’t a Nowhey cow. No way,” C mumbles, before dropping its head to graze once more.

D eyes him with a disinterested expression. “E’s a Nowhey if I’ve ever seen one.”

E’s ears flap with a enthusiasm. “B’s definitely not a Troomoo.”

So, which ones are Troomoo and which ones are Nowhey? The gears turn in Tommy’s head as he begins to work this out logically. Well, if they consider the possibilities, then…there can only be one solution. Once he’s done sorting them out and asking his question, the Troomoo cow gives him a straight answer.

[“That’s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Z5wVNSvl1io&) your cow,” Tommy says, gesturing to the cow standing by the calm man’s side. The man with the rake stalks over to the cow and snatches the rope from the other.

“I’m taking her, thank you,” the irate man says, stomping off. The calmer man does not seem frazzled at all. Instead, he walks over to the cow of similar appearance and rubs her on the head.

“Um, is Mr Anderson…” Tubbo starts, but it is at that moment that a booming voice sweeps through the farm, a man, whose attire signifies his importance, taking centre stage with a microphone in hand.

“Good morning, fellow citizens of Dropstone and our guests from the Molentary Express. My name is Anderson, and I am here to…”

“That’s our man,” Tommy says, and Tubbo nods solemnly.

“Fifty years ago, Dropstone was founded by Lady Sophia Herzen. It had been nothing more than a quaint settlement, unheard of by anyone outside the village. Now, through our efforts, we’ve evolved this town to what it is today and put it on the map!”

Cheers erupt through the audience. Wilbur claps politely.

“This day marks the fiftieth anniversary of Dropstone’s founding,” Mr Anderson says. “I would like to kick start the festivities with the event that everyone’s been looking forward to: the Livestock Competition!”

“Do we seriously have to wait for this to be over?” Tommy says, turning to Wilbur.

“Well, I doubt Mr Anderson can leave anytime soon,” Wilbur says. “We should enjoy the leisure while we still can.”

Tommy’s nostrils flare as he lets out a sharp breath. He turns back to the stage, where the winner is being announced. Oh. It’s that calm farmer from earlier, with his cow that got mixed up with Rake Guy’s.

“What?” Rake Guy cries, outraged. “How? My Belle is way better than that-”

Tommy doesn’t stick around to hear the end of it, because the Livestock Competition is soon drawing to a close and they’ve got to find Mr Anderson. Wilbur has already disappeared, attempting to search for their man amid the bustling crowd.

“Wilbur?” Wilbur’s height is a boon – for he is taller than most of the other townspeople. The collar of his coat visible over the crowd’s heads, allowing Tommy to locate him easily. With Tubbo’s wrist tight between his fingers, Tommy and his friend jostle over, elbowing and shoving, to where Wilbur has already started speaking with Mr Anderson.

“The Elysian Box? Yes, I’ve heard of it,” Mr Anderson says. “My son has been quite obsessed with it as of late.”

“Your son Charlie?”

“Yes.” Mr Anderson blinks. “That’s all he’s been talking about nowadays. I haven’t seen hide nor hair of him recently, and I fear he might be getting himself into trouble somewhere.”

“I’m sure he’s fine,” Wilbur says quickly. “Perhaps he’s wandering about the festival with a friend or two.”

“Maybe.” Mr Anderson says, the worry in his voice. “Charlie may know about the Elysian Box, but I am no expert myself. Although, I would discourage you from seeking him out, my good sirs. I’m sure you understand my concern.”

Tommy doesn’t understand, but Wilbur apparently does, because he thanks Mr Anderson and steers them away to a quiet corner by the goats.

“What was that about?” Tommy asks. “Who’s this Charlie fellow?”

“You know the woman that we were talking to, Tommy?” Wilbur says. “She was a maid who worked in the Anderson estate. The thing is, she told me about Charlie, right, and the situation with his father.”

“They don’t seem to be on good terms,” Tubbo says.

“Exactly,” Wilbur says, snapping his fingers. “What she also told me is that Charlie is leaving on the Molentary Express today, and that I should, under no circumstances, mention his departure to his father.”

“Oh. Why not?” Tommy asks.

“Weren’t you following? Mr Anderson doesn’t want his son to get caught up in this madness any more than he already has,” Wilbur says.

“What does him boarding the Molentary Express have to do with his obsession on the Elysian Box?” Tubbo asks.

“My friend who had investigated the Box had a ticket in hand,” Wilbur says, drawing the ticket from the deep pocket of his coat. “And that ticket was for the Molentary Express.”

“So the Molentary Express and the Elysian Box are connected?” Tubbo asks.

“That’s what we think,” Tommy says.

“Oh. Then…is the Elysian Box is supposed to be in Brighton? Because that’s where the train’s headed.”

“It could just be my instincts speaking, but I don’t believe so,” Wilbur says, shaking his head. “I think there’s a mystery we’ve yet to solve, and the answers to our questions lie on the Molentary Express.”

“Yeowza! Good sirs!”

Someone shouts at them from across the field, brandishing a microphone in hand and shuffling over to them. Tommy recognizes him – he’s the eccentric conductor who practically screeches into the speakers every time he makes an announcement.

“Time’s almost up, baby,” the conductor says. His name’s Sammy Thunder, according to the nametag pinned to his breast pocket. “The train’s gonna be leaving soon so get on over to the station as quickly as you can, yeah?”

With that, he twirls away, possibly in search of the other guests. The trio exchanges glances. They heard the man; they’ve got to leave this lovely town of Dropstone behind them.

They’ve hardly come across any new leads, apart from the fact that the son of the mayor, Charlie Anderson, is involved in this whole affair in some way or another. Perhaps they can seek him out once they are on the train. What his father doesn’t know won’t hurt him.

“Tommy? Where’s Tubbo?”

Tommy snaps to attention, almost bumping into a burly woman. He’d been so absorbed in his own thoughts that he’s lost track of his friend. A cursory glance yields him nothing – Tubbo is nowhere to be seen, and that short stature of his does not help matters in the slightest.

“Damn it,” Tommy mutters. He cups his hands, yelling at the top of his lungs for Tubbo’s name, earning the ire of several people around them.

“Tommy?”

Tubbo appears, looking somewhat dazed and confused.

“Where the hell were you?” Tommy huffs.

“Yeah, you shouldn’t run off like that,” Wilbur reprimands. “You could have gotten lost.”

“Sorry,” Tubbo mumbles sheepishly, scratching the back of his head. “But it was only a little while.”

“It could have become a long while,” Tommy mutters.

“Oh, but while I was gone, I heard something interesting about the Elysian Box,” Tubbo says. “Apparently, it came from a place called Folsense.”

“Folsense?” That’s the first Tommy’s heard of that place. However, Wilbur’s features hold befuddlement, as if he’s just been confronted with a puzzle he is unable to solve. That is strange in itself, considering Wilbur’s penchant for geography.

“And the only way you can get there is if you ride the Molentary Express,” Tubbo says, holding up a finger. “But that’s all I could gather.”

“Just as I thought, then,” Wilbur says. “There are still some secrets that we’ve yet to learn about the train. Come on. Let’s head back onto the train and see if we can’t figure them out.”

Tommy nods. He and Tubbo head back with Wilbur to the train station, where most of the other passengers are already boarding. What catches Tommy’s attention, however, appears to be a congregation of people, residents of Dropstone that Tommy remembers seeing around the town during their exploration.

The person standing nearest the train is a young man, his age somewhere between Wilbur’s and Tommy’s. He is bespectacled, dressed smartly in a leather coat and a pair of brown trousers.

[“Are](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RR8_BMN68Ok&) you sure you’ll be alright?” a woman asks. It’s the woman who was Wilbur’s informant.

The man nods, saluting them. “I’ll be fine. Don’t worry about me.”

With that, he spins on his heels and heads up the train.

“He’s insanely rich,” Wilbur says.

“Why?” Tubbo purses his lips.

“That’s the second car,” Wilbur says. “The restricted one.”

Tommy hadn’t noticed. Right. The clear class divide between the rich and the supremely rich.

Still, they have a new objective in mind: to figure out the true connection between the Elysian Box and the Molentary Express. Moreover, two new names have popped up: Charlie and Folsense. Are they, too, linked somehow?

Then again, not like they can interact with the man when he’s staying in the restricted cabin. Maybe they can sneak in somehow?

The train begins to move off as soon as all the guests have returned. The steady roll of wheels against rails propels the train forward, zooming as fast as a bullet. It makes for a tunnel in the distance, carved into a cliff by a cape, sparkling waters glimmering in the brilliance of the sun’s glow. Tommy turns to Wilbur, who seems to be on his phone, scrolling through weblinks.

“Funny,” Wilbur says. “The last time anyone wrote anything about Folsense was fifty years ago.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Tubbo asks.

“Folsense used to be a town centred on mining expeditions,” Wilbur says, reading off his phone. “The town closed down fifty years ago, when a strange, unnamed illness spread throughout the town and killed most of the residents.”

“You mean to say that Sam Nook went to Folsense and got the Elysian Box from there?” Tommy asks.

Wilbur presses his lips together. “Maybe. We have no way of knowing for sure.” He stands. “Come. Let us ask some of the staff. If this train is bound for Folsense, then they should know something about it.”

Tommy nods. He and Tubbo follow Wilbur out of the cabin. They have to extract as much information as they can before the train reaches their destination.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> _rurulu (miloutic) made an amazing fanart for this chapter! (pls check it out i love it):   
> https://glitchycats.tumblr.com/post/643017319552106496/
> 
> Puzzle(s) in this Chapter:  
> The Winning Arrow  
> World's Best Golfer  
> Misinformootion


	4. Diverging Paths

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> something strange happens...

[“Dining](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RR8_BMN68Ok&) services will close in about ten minutes?” Wilbur asks with a confused tilt of his head.

“Yes,” the waiter at the restaurant says, sporting a polite smile. “The tunnel is much too dark to conduct any services, and everyone is to remain in their cabins for the entire duration. We appreciate your cooperation and we apologize for any inconvenience.”

A most textbook answer if Tommy’s ever heard one. He, Wilbur and Tubbo step away from the restaurant, gathering at the lounge in the same car. Now’s a good a time as any to consolidate their information.

[“So,](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7t2AMjtVv28&) everyone’s been saying that the train will shut down when we reach that tunnel,” Tubbo says. “Which is…in about ten minutes.”

“We don’t have that much time, then,” Tommy says. “No one seems to know anything about Folsense.”

“Or maybe they don’t want to say. Or they may be bound to secrecy,” Wilbur says pensively. “Maybe Folsense was the train’s secret destination.”

“But our tickets say that we’re heading to Brighton,” Tommy says.

Wilbur rubs at his chin, before rising to his feet. “Tommy and Tubbo, we are going to have to make our way into the restricted car.”

“But…we’re supposed to stay in our cabins,” Tubbo protests.

“I suspect that that car hides a secret or two about Folsense,” Wilbur says. “If it has something to do with Folsense, then it likely has something to do with the Elysian Box as well. By hook or by crook, we are going to have to get on that car.”

Tommy nods. If he’s already in this deep, then he might as well go all the way. They stride back down the string of cars, seeing not a single member of staff in sight nor any wandering guests. There are only a couple of minutes left till they enter the tunnel so they’ve got to move fast.

Unfortunately for them, their advance is halted by a complicated lock on the door of the restricted car. It makes perfect sense to keep unauthorised personnel out, but it does put a damper on their spirits when they have to work out the solution to this strange lock.

[ ** <Puzzle: The Door’s Code> ** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcs066Q4rvU&)

<https://layton.fandom.com/wiki/Puzzle:The_Door%27s_Code?file=DB056.png>

The lock is made up of five symbols: a star, a circle, a diamond, a crescent and an “X”, each one placed slightly lower than the other going from left to right. Beside the lock is a note pinned to the wall’s bulletin board, perhaps by an absentminded employee. In any case, it would certainly aid them in their quest to solve this puzzle.

  1. The star must be next to the moon.
  2. The X must be second from the top.
  3. The circle must be somewhere above the diamond
  4. The moon must be located two places below the diamond.



“Well, there’s only one way we can arrange it where all four conditions can be fulfilled,” Wilbur says. He shifts the symbols around, and almost immediately, the lock clicks open, granting them access to the restricted car.

The car looks no different from that of the others, also furnished with green carpets and walls and the sweet aroma of roses. Tommy shuts the door behind him.

[“The](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZWXHK0s5Dg&) doors are all unlocked,” Tubbo says, pushing against a door, swinging open to reveal an empty one.

Is the entire car empty?

“There’re three locked ones,” Wilbur notes. If one of them is Charlie, then who might the other two belong to? It doesn’t matter right now. In one or two minutes, the train would pass through the tunnel, and they’d have to hide themselves in one of the cabins in case a member of staff-

“Hey!”

Crap. Speak of the devil. Tommy’s mind goes into overdrive, trying to pick out the most plausible explanation for their disobedience.

The one who approaches them is the train conductor. What was his name again? Sammy Thunder? He holds several bouquets of roses in hand.

“Sorry for asking, but you guys seem nice enough,” Thunder says, his face hardly visible over the puffy bouquets. “Mind if you help me spread these bouquets out? I need their scent to fill the whole car, but they’re a little much for me.”

Tommy can see why, or rather, _smell_ why. Even standing a distance from the man, the bouquets give off such a strong scent that he’d go so far as to regard it as “pungent”. Begrudgingly, he receives a couple of bouquets from Thunder.

“Thanks. I really appreciate it,” Thunder says, relief settling across his features. “I’ll go put these at the other end of the car. You guys can help settle this end.”

Aren’t they supposed to be the guests here? Tommy glares at his bouquet. Well, it’s time to get to work.

[ ** <Puzzle: Smell the Roses> ** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcs066Q4rvU&)

<https://layton.fandom.com/wiki/Puzzle:Smell_the_Roses?file=DB057.png>

Upon much trial and error, Tommy, Tubbo and Wilbur realize that the scent of the roses reaches two arbitrary squares in all directions, but they cannot penetrate walls. If the fragrance of two or more roses overlap, then the resulting smell will be too overpowering, so the roses must be spaced out.

How are they going to place the roses? That’s what Tommy’d like to know. With a bit of quick-thinking on Wilbur’s part, he manages to mark out the spots where the bouquets need to go and they complete the task successfully.

At the end of the challenge, Tommy really does need to clear his nose. Or vomit. Either will do.

[“Thanks](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZWXHK0s5Dg&) so much,” Thunder says, meeting them back near the door to the non-restricted car. He shepherds them into the guest room with a giant grin and microphone in hand. “Now sit tight and relax. We’ll Folsense soon enough.”

There’s that agin. Folsense. He’s the first member of staff that mentioned the name of that place. Does he know something the other member don’t? Tommy opens his mouth to ask him more, but Thunder shuts their door with a click.

“Well, that was rude,” Tubbo says.

“What was that, though?” Tommy asks. Wilbur, on the other hand, appears deep in thought. Upon closer inspection, it’s not that he’s contemplative. He’s…asleep? Wilbur’s eyes are shut as he sits upon the couch, arms folded, head lolling back.

“Wilbur?” Tommy asks, stifling a sudden yawn. What’s up with them? As soon as he reaches the couch, he collapses onto its plush seat, unable to keep his eyes open. It’s as if they’ve been bewitched, fallen victim to a spell of slumber cast upon them.

Tubbo is knocked out as well, slumped over the arm rest on the opposite couch. Tommy yawns once more, exhaustion weighing his limbs against the cushion of the couch.

Within seconds, he’s fast asleep.

*

[“Rise](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RR8_BMN68Ok&) and shine, gentlemen! We’re soon reaching our next stop! Get ready to meet the exciting town of Folsense!”

Tommy blinks blearily, cursing the fogginess of his mind. What happened? Why’s he waking up to the sound of a shrieking madman? Tommy rubs at his eyes, throwing a few glances around to find Wilbur and Tubbo rubbing the grogginess from their eyes as well.

Also, did he hear what he just heard? That they’re now headed for Folsense? Tommy makes for the window, knocking his kneecap painfully against the coffee table. Night has descended upon them, the full moon and twinkling stars bright against the background of black.

The only settlement that Tommy sees for miles is a small town, its dreary exterior made eerier by the presence of a foreboding castle situated a forest just a stone’s throw away. Is that town Folsense?

The train approaches the station and grinds to a halt. The station of Folsense looks overgrown with weeds and the benches are rusted. There is a signboard, though, depicting yellowed photographs of a livelier scene.

“Come on,” Wilbur says. “Let’s get off.”

The three emerge from the train, noticing Thunder and Mr Beluga chatting outside the cars. The latter appears to be in a state of impatience, while the former attempts to placate him with increasing exasperation on his end.

I want you to find it, you scatterbrain! You nimwit!” Mr Beluga shouts, the bite in his words more vicious than the jaws of a lion, Tommy thinks. He’d been so pleasant when they met him back on the observation deck. Is this how he’s truly like as a person? “Now!”

“But Unko-!”

“No buts!”

“They always seem to be fighting, don’t they?” Tommy says.

“They do?” Tubbo wonders, sparing the duo a curious gaze.

Wilbur hums as he moves on ahead, intent on exploring this new town that they’ve come to. From what Tommy sees, the whole place is like a ghost town, dilapidated building flanking the streets, looking like no one’s lived here in years. Is this really the town that Sam Nook retrieved the Box from? Moreover, the wisps of curling white mist doesn’t make it any less creepy.

Is this Folsense?” Tubbo asks, pointing to a set of posters stuck to the rotting wooden bulletin board that Tommy had seen earlier from the cabin’s window. There are no captions, but the pictures depicted are of a town all lit up and bustling, of a town that never sleeps. The colourful glow provides a sharp contrast to the cluster of grey and dead buildings that stands before them.

From the corner of his eye, Tommy spots a man rushing off the train, his legs taking him down the stone pathway as quickly as they can. Isn’t that Charlie? Tommy wonders where he is going in such a hurry. Does he know where the Elysian Box has gone?

In any case, there is nothing they can do now but to investigate this new town they have been thrown into. Wilbur leads them past the archway that borders the station, the trio diving straight into the gentle embrace of the mist curling around the town.

That is, until an overwhelming headache seizes Tommy’s senses briefly. The dull throb evolves into a full-on migraine, pain splitting his head in two, forcing him to his knees as he gasps for breath. It is like a truck rammed into him, sending him sprawling across the road like a sack of potatoes.

It is not just him. Forcing one eye open, Tommy notices Tubbo and Wilbur both recovering from the agonizing headaches of their own. Tubbo rises from the ground, a palm pressed flat against his skull, while Wilbur grips the railing of the station’s flight of stairs, teeth gritted.

When the unpleasant sensation dies down, leaving a lingering tingling in Tommy’s head, he opens both eyes, jaw agape. What had once been the shadow of a town way past its prime stands a lively settlement, glaring lights from streetlamps and billboards extremely piercing.

It is not just the buildings which have undergone an amazing renovation in seconds, but people have appeared too. Not just the commuters who had been aboard the Molentary Express, but actual townspeople. It is as if they have just walked through the gates to an alternate universe.

“What the…?” Tubbo tenses, shoulders drawn up in shock.

Wilbur seems no less astounded, caught completely off guard with a hardened expression. The entire town has just transformed before their very eyes, the pervasive smell of the mist the only constant. How had that happened?

“I don’t like this,” Tubbo says, shaking his head, looking troubled.

[Wilbur](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2OmAxetWrc&) steps forward, making his way deeper into this strange town. No one really pays attention to them, as if they are just ghosts floating by.

“Wilbur, Tommy…” Tubbo is lagging a few paces, staggering over to them with fingers still massaging his forehead. “I’m not feeling too good.”

Perhaps Wilbur didn’t hear him, because he continues walking, as if enamoured by the miracle they’d just witnessed. Tommy rushes back to Tubbo’s side, helping him over to the fountain to have a sit.

“Wilbur!” Tommy shouts, voice carried easily across the quiet of the town. It is then that Wilbur pauses, wearing an annoyed frown as he turns to face them, mouth unmoving. That is not a face that Tommy likes, because he’s never seen it before. No matter how irritating Wilbur says Tommy is, he’s never shown him something quite so hostile. He swallows the lump in his throat. “Tubbo’s not feeling well.”

Wilbur bites his lip, as if considering his options, conflict dancing across his features. After what seems like forever, he turns his back to them.

“Let’s find a hotel for Tubbo to stay, then we’ll begin our investigation of the town,” Wilbur says. Without waiting for a reply, he continues walking. A strange feeling bubbles up Tommy’s chest. He loathes it, quashing down the twinge of disgust as quickly as it had arrived. Right now, Tubbo is his highest priority.

“Can you walk?” Tommy asks.

“Yeah. I think so.” Tubbo rises unsteadily to his feet, and Tommy helps him hobble over to where Wilbur is standing in front of a fountain, gazing at four buildings ahead.

[ ** <Puzzle: Where ** ** ’ ** ** s the Hotel?> ** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcs066Q4rvU&)

“A sign pointed me in this direction, so one of these four buildings is a hotel,” Wilbur says, not even sparing them a glance. Tommy’s gaze follows Wilbur’s. They are all unnamed, a strange choice for a hotel if it intends to grab the attention of potential stayers.

After some deliberation and a few coughs on Tubbo’s side, Wilbur begins to make his way towards one of the buildings, convinced of his answer. He may be an insufferable prick now, but if there is anything Tommy trusts him on, it is his skill of deduction and observation.

Indeed, the building which they come to resembles a hotel on the inside, complete with a reception desk and a porter standing by, as well as a grand set of stairs that lead up to the various rooms. The mist follows them even here, the smell permeating the lobby.

[Wilbur](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2OmAxetWrc&) books them a room on the second floor, located at the very end of the hallway. The door swings open to reveal a neat space, consisting of three beds and a bathroom which lies furthest from the door. To their left is a full-length window stretching from the floor to the ceiling, affording them a beautiful view of Folsense’s the night scene.

“If you need anything, call us,” Wilbur tells Tubbo, sitting him down on a bed. “Your phone still has battery, right?”

Tubbo nods, sniffling. Could it be the mist? Is that what’s causing this?

The rumour that Wilbur had mentioned on the Molentary Express comes rushing back to him. The population had been nearly wiped out by a mysterious illness that struck fast and deadly. Might this be the onset of…?

If that’s the case, then they have to hurry and find the Box, then devise a way out of this peculiar town. Wilbur and Tommy wave goodbye to Tubbo, exiting the room and coming to the lobby where they meet with two familiar faces.

“What’re _you_ doing here?” Tommy cries.

“That’s _our_ line!” Skeppy exclaims in turn. Checking into the very same hotel is a familiar pair: Inspector Halo and Skeppy. Tommy had not seen them since that incident with the woman and poodle on the train. Had one of the locked cabins in the restricted cabin been one of theirs? Or had they snuck in like he, Tubbo and Wilbur did?

“What a fine coincidence,” Wilbur says quickly. “If you’d excuse us, there is something we must investigate.”

“Alright then,” Skeppy says, flashing the duo a confused glance as Wilbur strides past them, out the door before he can get another word in.

“He’s in a funk,” Tommy says, dismissing his concern flippantly. “He’s being all self-important and shit.”

“Oh.” Skeppy shrugs. “Well, you be careful out there.”

“Yeah, yeah.”

Tommy takes off after Wilbur, the latter having wandered off somewhere.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Puzzle(s) in this Chapter:  
> The Door's Code  
> Smell the Roses  
> Where's the Hotel?


	5. The Phantom Town of Folsense

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> exploring folsense

[He](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2OmAxetWrc&) finds this friend heading the main street, furnished with a sturdy set of brick walls, with houses situated higher up in the hill. This must be the residential district, what with the sheer number of houses.

Wilbur makes a beeline for a quaint antique shop displaying all sorts of wooden figurines and furniture. Tommy, with no other choice, follows him, brushing past a girl chewing on a pack of liquorice.

If Tommy thought antique shops smelled like old wood, this one sure betrays his expectations. While it may be piled high with garnished oaken and mahogany furniture, none of them look particularly ancient. How can this place call itself an antique shop if it does not sell archaic wares?

“Welcome.” A bearded man approaches them, pushing his spectacles up the bridge of his nose. “Looking for something in particular?”

“Well, yes,” Wilbur says. “Have you heard of the Elysian Box?”

“The…Elysian Box, you say?” the shopkeeper says, frowning. “You’re the third person to have asked about it today.”

“The third person? Who were the other two?” Wilbur asks.

“Why, a young man and an elderly one,” the shopkeeper says. “And I can only tell you what I’ve told them: that I know nothing.”

The young man must have been Charlie, and the elderly one Mr Beluga.

“Is there anyone in this town that might know something, then?” Wilbur asks, doing his best to rein in his impatience. If the man noticed, he doesn’t mention it.

“The Herzen Museum might have something of note to you,” the shopkeeper says. “It’s at the centre of town, the biggest building in Folsense. You can’t miss it.”

“I see. We’ll be on our way then.”

“Not so fast,” the shopkeeper says, a mischievous glint in his eye. “Now that I’ve helped you, would you mind helping me with this little devil of a puzzle? It’s kept me up all night. Until I can solve it, I fear my mind will be unable to rest.”

“I…” Wilbur trails off, then sighs. “Alright. I suppose we’ll see it. What’s the matter?”

[ ** <Puzzle: Plaza Puzzle> ** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcs066Q4rvU&)

The man shows them a photograph depicting what appears to be the bird’s-eye view of a neat, round plaza.

“There’s this big statue in the middle of this plaza. When you take away the area occupied by the statue, the plaza is rather donut-like in shape. I’ve been challenged to divide the plaza into two identically-shaped parts using only one line,” the shopkeeper says. “The line cannot touch the statue at all, either.”

“Well,” Wilbur says immediately. “It’s simple. All you have to do is this.”

He demonstrates the answer to the shopkeeper, and he nods with widened eyes.

[“I see,”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2OmAxetWrc&) he says, thanking them for their assistance. “I believe the Herzen Museum would have whatever you need to find.”

Wilbur thanks him as well as they take their leave.“Come on, Tommy. Let us make haste.”

The Herzen Museum…Tommy has never been a big fan of museums, what with it merely being a collection of relics of bygone ages.

Stepping out once more into the blinding lights of Folsense, Tommy follows Wilbur down the main road that opens up into the central street, diverging into seedier alleyways and wider roads that appear to be more residential and shopping districts.

Herzen Museum, if it truly is the biggest building in the entire town, is visible over the rows of trees. It reminds Tommy of a puzzle, somehow.

“Hey, Wilbur. Wanna hear a puzzle?”

Wilbur hums noncommittally. They make their way up a flight of stairs, each step taking them closer to the massive museum.

[ ** <Puzzle: Top of the Tower> ** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcs066Q4rvU&)

[ ](https://layton.fandom.com/wiki/Puzzle:Top_of_the_Tower?file=DB076.png)

“Okay, so man’s at the top of this tower and looking out the observation deck. Being at the top of a tower, I can see every point in the city except for one spot.”

“Uh huh. Do you have a ceiling over your head?”

“Yeah.”

“Then it’s clearly the top of the tower,” Wilbur says. “You can’t see the top of the tower if you’re standing under its roof.”

Tommy puffs his cheeks out. “Why are you so clever, Wilbur?”

“More like, why are you so dumb?”

Tommy laughs. “Touché.”

[They](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2OmAxetWrc&) arrive at the Herzen Museum, walking down the tree-lined street paved with smooth stone. The cool, evening breeze caresses their faces, their coats flapping in the gale.

“It’s locked,” Wilbur says, rattling the large metal gates that bar them from entry. A giant padlock keeps them shut tight, unmoving even in the strongest of gusts.

“The museum opens later,” a voice speaks up from behind them. Tommy spins on his heels, finding a girl with a book in hand and a checked dress smiling at them. “Probably about half an hour.”

“I see. We’ll just have to wait then,” Wilbur says.

“Why not pass the time with a puzzle?” the girl says wit the brightest grin on her face. “I’ve got just the thing for a pair of gentlemen like yourselves!”

Wilbur exhales sharply. “Well, seeing as we’ve got nothing to do at the moment…”

The girl beams, clasping her hands together. “Great! You’re going to love this one!”

[ ** <Puzzle: Walking the Dog> ** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcs066Q4rvU&)

“So, I take my dog out for a walk with my dad. I start walking with my dog on a leash ten seconds before my dad exits the house. The second he does, I take my dog off the leash and she runs over to my dad. Upon reaching him, my dog turns around and heads for me. She keeps doing this until my dad catches up with me. If my dog moves at five metres per second, my dad at two metres and myself at one metre per second, how far does my dog run by the time my dad catches up to me?”

While Tommy is still trying to wrap his head around the numbers, he can see the gears in Wilbur’s head start to turn like an elaborate mechanism, formulating an elegant answer in a matter of minutes.

“Fifty metres,” Wilbur says.

“Wow! That’s correct!” the girl grins. She digs into her pocket and hands Wilbur what appears to be a piece of candy, wrapped tightly in crinkled cellophane. She glances at her wristwatch and gasps at the time.

“I must go now! It’s getting rather late.”

She bids them a rushed goodbye and dashes off down the street, leaving Wilbur and Tommy alone outside the Museum.

[“Do](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JsFuiEMxWQA&) you want it? I’m not a big fan of sweets myself.”

“Would I ever.” Tommy receives the candy from Wilbur and stuffs it into his mouth. Immediately, he spits it out, coughing and spluttering. The candy tumbles from his mouth, and Tommy rubs at his tongue, desperate to rid himself of the bitter taste of sand.

“What’s wrong?” Wilbur asks, alarmed.

Tommy thumps a fist against his chest. God, that was the most terrible piece of candy he’s ever eaten in his life. How and why had it tasted like _sand_ and _earth_ of all things? Where the heck is that offensive piece of…

It’s gone. Tommy glances around.

Nothing.

A chill travels up his spine. Had that girl been a ghost? Had he just eaten some kind of ghost fruit and now he’s doomed to do her bidding for the rest of his life?

No way. His mind must be playing tricks on him. That candy must have rolled off somewhere – it is entirely spherical, after all. However, as soon as he meets Wilbur’s troubled frown, a sense of unease crawls under his skin.

“Instead of wasting our time away, I think we should head on over to other districts and speak to the other townspeople,” Wilbur says. “Come on. Let us go.”

He heads down another brightly-lit path, featuring all sorts of restaurants and souvenir and accessory shops.

Tommy spies Bad and Skeppy standing outside a shocking pink building, decorated with winking fairy lights. They are speaking with a woman in a skimpy violet dress, answering their questions with the most serious expression upon her face. Might they be asking about the Elysian Box? Is this conversation worth eavesdropping on?

“A vampire? Are you sure that it isn’t some urban legend?” Bad asks.

“I’m certain,” the woman says, tapping her chin ruminatively. “You see that castle over there yonder?”

Tommy follows her gesture, at the same sinister castle that he had seen out of the train window when they’d first arrived. It looks no less evil than before, perched on a hill at the edge of a dense forest, only accessible by a rickety bridge stretched across a rocky chasm.

“That’s where the vamp lives,” the woman says, folding her arms. “Rumours are that people who go there never come back.”

“That’s nonsense,” Bad says with a nervous chuckle. “Vampires can’t exist.”

“Well, I’d rather you not make a mockery of our plight,” the woman says indignantly, turning away, much to Bad and Skeppy’s protest. “The cart to the castle enters through the gate once a day, at midnight. If you’re lucky, you can follow it through to the castle.”

“A cart? Hey, wait!” Bad starts, only for the woman to disappear behind the door and slam it in their faces.

While it may be comical to watch Bad wail, Tommy is more concerned about the new piece of information that they have just learned. A vampire? Living up there in that castle? The structure definitely looks the part, but even so…vampires can’t possibly exist, can they?

“Wilbur?” Tommy starts, question in his tone.

“Vampires can’t exist,” Wilbur mutters, and begins to head off in the direction of the museum once more. It’s been slightly less than half an hour, but it should be open by the time they returned.

*

Lo and behold, the museum is now open, its metal gates swung inward, revealing the most tranquil garden that Tommy’s ever seen. Water bursts from a fountain in its middle, a charming stone statue of a fish spewing water from its mouth.

The museum’s main exhibits lie in a grand building behind the garden, past two gargoyles standing guard by the fountain.

It’s only when Tommy is halfway up the cracked steps of the museum that he notices Wilbur’s absence.

“Wilbur?”

He returns to Wilbur’s side, his friend currently preoccupied with examining a symbol on the ground. It resembles that of a goat, horns curling around its ears and head, ending at either side of its chin. Its blank eyes stare up at them, soulless in a mere engraving.

“What’s that?” Tommy wonders.

“A goat,” Wilbur replies simply. “Perhaps it’s the museum’s motif.”

Tommy nods, but something tells him that there may be more to this emblem than they realize. Wilbur accompanies him up to the museum’s entrance – nothing as spectacular as the National History Museum, but still magnificent nonetheless.

Upon passing through its doors, Tommy is greeted with a wondrous display of relics. The hall is blanketed with swathes of velvet. Displayed in glass cases in the centre of the hall are precious ores, glittering in the lights. All manner of items are showcased, including several sets of silver cutlery and pristine earthenware pots. The porcelain plates and bowls gleam with a magical sheen. Flowy and baggy clothing are hung up at the far end of the first floor, beside a steep flight of stairs.

A plump man ambles over, wearing a starched uniform, his nametag reading: Grinko. He must be the curator.

“Welcome,” Grinko says, fingers clasped amicably in front of him. “How may I help you?”

“Have you heard of something called the Elysian Box?” Wilbur asks. Quick and straight to the point, it seems.

Grinko shakes his head sadly. “I’m afraid the only thing that I know about it is that it was once in the hands of the Herzens.”

“The Herzens?” Well, this museum _is_ the Herzen Museum, after all. However, Tommy cannot quite shrug the nagging feeling that he’s heard the name Herzen elsewhere before…

“Yes,” Grinko chuckles. “This museum is dedicated to the Herzen family. They were the ones who built Folsense up into what it is now.”

That’s…contradictory to the information they currently gathered. In so many ways.

“Who are the Herzens and where are they now?” Wilbur asks.

Grinko looks somewhat taken aback at the outburst but responds kindly. “Duke Herzen – the founder of this town – passed away some time ago. He was succeeded by two sons: Anton and Fredrich.”

“Two sons?”

“Indeed. Come with me.” Grinko pads up the stairs. Wilbur and Tommy follow him, arriving at the second floor that boasts a collection of tomes, furniture and stationery that the Herzens presumably used.

Placed upon an easel is a photograph, browned with age, depicting three men. The oldest one, face framed with white hairs, must be Duke Herzen, dressed in a maroon suit with a cravat peeking out from his collar. His arms are folded, assuming a most regal stance. The other two men, his sons, wear equally-formal clothing, the taller one ruffling the hair of the shorter.

They look genuinely happy.

But there’s something not quite right here…Tommy scrutinizes the photograph, humming as he tries to pinpoint exactly what is wrong with this picture.

“Isn’t that Mr Beluga?” Wilbur says, gesturing at the younger man.

Grinko nods. “Indeed it is. I heard he’s built up a mighty fine railway all on his own now.”

“That must be the Molentary Express,” Tommy says.

“And the other man is his brother?” Wilbur asks. Grinko affirms that statement.

“Indeed. That is Anton Herzen. There’s been rumours of vampires floating around town recently, and that that man is at the heart of it all.”

“So Big A’s a vampire?” Tommy asks, furrowing his brow.

“No one knows, but Anton’s been rumoured to have made his lair in that spooky castle too,” Grinko says. “He never ventures into town, but people do say that he’s snatched foolish adventurers up and gobbled them for lunch.”

“That’s absurd,” Wilbur says confidently.

“That’s what I’d like to think as well,” Grinko says grimly. “Still, I’d implore you to stay away from the castle. It is a place of danger, and I’d hate for you to place yourself in great peril for your pursuit, no matter how significant.”

Even if their adventure does lead them straight to the lion’s den, Tommy doesn’t quite see how they can extricate themselves from this situation. As he’s thought before, they’re now in too deep to leave now. It’s nerve-wracking, to be sure, but unsolved mysteries do rob sleep from him.

“There’s one more thing I’d like to ask,” Wilbur says. “Regarding that goat emblem near the fountain…”

“That symbol belongs to the Herzens,” Grinko says. “It is their signature, if you will.”

A signature of the Herzens?

“Thank you for your help,” Wilbur says with a tight smile. “We have places to be.”

“I’m glad,” Grinko bows his head. “The museum will be open for a while should you want to revisit.”

[Wilbur](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2OmAxetWrc) and Tommy swiftly leave the premises.

“Where are we going now, Wilbur?” Tommy asks.

“We must search for the Inspector,” Wilbur says. “There is something of note that I would like to clarify with him.”

What could the Inspector have that Wilbur might need? Surely not the brains. Muscle, perhaps? Curious, Tommy follows Wilbur, the duo making their way back to the hotel where Tubbo is staying.

Stepping through its creaky door, Tommy finds that Wilbur’s hunch is right on the money – Bad and Skeppy appear to be involved in a heated discussion with a certain Mr Beluga and his nephew, Thunder.

“Please! Any snippet of information will do,” Skeppy pleads. “Come on. There’s a whole murder riding on this.”

“Well, even then, I can’t tell you what I don’t know,” Mr Beluga says, turning his nose up. “The Elysian Box remains elusive and out of my grasp.”

“But Unko,” Thunder starts, only for Mr Beluga to stab him in the back with the sharp end of his walking cane. Thunder howls with pain, his hands flying up to soothe the dull throb.

Wilbur and Tommy approach the foursome.

“Oh, it’s you again,” Bad says pleasantly. “How might we help you, Mr Soot and the…” Bad squints. “The cursing muffinhead.”

“My name’s Tommy Innit,” Tommy huffs. “Not some fuckin-”

“Language!”

“Inspector,” Wilbur says, voice sounding much more authoritative than usual. “Do you still have in your possession the photograph you retrieved from Sam’s study?”

“Sam? Oh, you mean Sam Nook?” Bad reaches into the pocket of his black coat, rummaging through it. “Uh, yeah. I brought it with me. It’s all torn up and everything, but I thought it might come in…handy…”

Bad frowns and glances down, letting out the most piercing shriek Tommy has ever had the displeasure of hearing. Annoyance simmers in him when he notices Bad’s fingers poking out from the giant hole in the cloth that is his pocket.

“Bad!” Skeppy cries.

“No!” Bad exclaims, sounding on the edge of despair. “I put the photograph in here and…”

“It’s all gone now. Great. Just great.” Wilbur throws up his hands, huffy in tone. “Now we’ll never know-”

Just then, the door creaks open and Tubbo strides through, eyes widening when he notices the congregation of people in the lobby. Or, more plausibly, Wilbur and Tommy’s presences.

“Tubbo? I thought you were supposed to be resting,” Tommy says, hands on his hips.

“I…um…I needed some fresh air, you know,” Tubbo says, scratching his head. “And, um…to stretch my legs a little.”

Tommy nods. “You hungry or anything, Tubbo?”

Tubbo shakes his head and heads up the stairs, making for their room. Tommy turns his attention back to a despondent Inspector Halo and Skeppy, Thunder and a Mr Beluga thrumming with fury.

“Bad, when was the last time you saw that photograph?” Tommy asks.

“I was sure I had it up until we reached Folsense,” Bad mumbles. Tommy groans. Now’s not the time for this sorry excuse of a detective to be wallowing in his own self-pity.

“Then we ran into that dog,” Skeppy says. “The one that was guarding the path. It attacked us and we made a run for it. I think that’s when it took a chunk out of your coat.”

Tommy doesn’t remember seeing a dog, but the canine must be rather vicious if it sent both Bad and Skeppy running like that.

“Then…well…that must be when we lost the photograph,” Bad says.

“Why not we find it?” Tommy asks. “Do you remember the route you took?”

Bad’s eyes light up. “Oh! Yes! I do! I mean…” He drops his head. “A little…”

Skeppy produces a map of Folsense from his pocket, nicked from the train station, and plasters it over the table. He tosses a pen it to Tommy, who catches it expertly.

“Well,” Tommy says, uncapping the pen. “Give me all you’ve got, Inspector.”

[ ** <Puzzle: Inspector Halo’s Route> ** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcs066Q4rvU&)

<https://layton.fandom.com/wiki/Puzzle:Chelmey%27s_Route?file=DB110.png>

“Well, only one of the turns I made was at an intersection with a café on it. Oh, and I passed in front of one hat shop. And one flower shop. That’s when I came back to the hotel.”

Tommy stares intently at the map, tracing out multiple routes in his head. The cogs turn in his mind, their teeth gnashing and grinding. Within a minute, Tommy stabs the pen’s nib into the map and begins to draw.

He’s never had to consult this side of himself for a while. It’s somewhat exhilarating.

[Now](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2OmAxetWrc&) that he’s got Bad’s route down, it’s time to begin the hunt. Wilbur is watching them with a bored expression on his face, arms folded.

“We’ll be back with good news,” Tommy says. “Come on, Wilbur. We’ve got things to do.”

He doesn’t miss the tired lines on Wilbur’s forehead, the way the sparkle has left his eyes. However, Tommy cannot afford to let that bring him down. To keep Wilbur active and thinking – he’s really the only one that can close this case, after all, taking the other stakeholders into consideration – Tommy has got to stay spirited. Lively, if you will.

This time, map in hand, it’s Tommy who takes the lead, with Wilbur plodding on behind him. All they’ve got to do now, all that they _can_ do now, is to follow Bad’s trail and pick up the pieces along the way.

*

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Puzzle(s) in this Chapter:   
> Plaza Puzzle  
> Top of the Tower  
> Walking the Dog  
> Inspector Halo's Route


	6. Shadows on the Street Corner

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> hunting for the photograph scraps

[The](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t2OmAxetWrc&) route takes them down a narrow alleyway, flanked by brick walls and dingy trash cans. What had once been the overwhelming smell of the mist has now diminished into a faint odour as Tommy and Wilbur journey down this damp backstreet.

Flies flit around their faces and Tommy swats at them as he squints at the map. They have managed to find three of fifteen pieces so there are twelve left to go.

Approaching a massive junkyard, sharp-eyed Tommy picks up yet another piece. Drifting along the floor with a bundle of crumpled newspaper is yet another one. Slowly but surely, they collect the torn pieces, each piece one step closer to their ultimate goal.

The route takes them down another dark and deserted alleyway that ends in a small shed. A man who just happens to be leaving, the door closes with a squeak behind him.

“Hey! Excuse me!”

Tommy waves, jogging over to the man, the map flapping in his hand. The man glances over, sizing both himself and Wilbur up. He is significantly shorter than them both, his chin covered in stubble and he is dressed in a puke-green uniform and dirty boots.

“Have you seen a photograph scrap anywhere? It’s all brown.”

“A scrap?” The man scratches his head. “You mean these?” He reaches into his pocket and fishes out a couple of soaked pieces of paper with grubby hands. Well, they are not in the best condition, but Tommy should be grateful that they even got a couple back.

“You guys don’t look like you’re from around here,” the man says, regarding them with a curious gaze.

“We’re from London,” Tommy says. “It’s really far from here.”

“About a day’s travel, I’ve heard,” the man says, nodding. “This place prides itself on its precious metals and ores. I’m not sure why you’d like to visit. If you’re tourists, I suggest you visit the Herzen Museum and the mines. They’re pretty popular attractions.”

Popular for a place with no tourists. Interesting.

“Well, we’re actually searching for this thing called the Elysian Box,” Tommy says, holding hope in his heart.

“I don’t know what that is, but I wish you luck,” the man says. Tommy’s hopes are instantly dashed. “Just make sure to keep clear of the castle, you hear? There’s probably a vamp living up over in that evil place.”

Tommy nods and thanks him for the advice. They turn back down the alleyway and head back all the way, arriving once more at the residential district.

“So we’ve got seven out of fifteen. Maybe the rest were scattered in the wind,” Wilbur says.

“Then we’ll have to go find them,” Tommy says, rolling up the map and stuffing it into his pockets. Well, now’s a good a time to start as any.

*

“There. That’s the last one.”

Tommy nabs the final piece of the photograph so close to a rusted metal gate, beyond it a dark thicket that they have no business at.

“Why’d you want to see the photograph, Wilbur?” Tommy asks, handing him the last piece.

“There’s something I’d like to verify,” Wilbur says. He settles down on the ground. The wind has died down somewhat, so Tommy is not as chilly as before. Wilbur begins to place the pieces down, matching jagged edge to jagged edge.

Soon, the unconventional jigsaw puzzle is complete, revealing the photograph’s hidden secret: the emblem of a goat carved into what appears to be a bronze-plated box. Can it be…?

“We can be sure that the Elysian Box belongs to the Herzens, then,” Wilbur says. “That must mean that…” He glances towards the castle in the distance.

Well, that would mark the endpoint of their adventure. They are going to have to find a way over to the castle and beat the shit out of that vampire of whoever lives there. Oh, and get some answers while they are at it.

All of a sudden, a gale zips by them, snatching up a piece of the puzzle and takes it along for the ride, carrying it deeper into the forest where the two have no hope of getting into with the rusted gate in the way.

“Oh no.” Tommy stares at the remainder of the photograph in dismay. “Now it looks like a _frog_!”

Indeed, without the piece in the very middle of the photograph, the goat’s head is missing and the entire emblem now takes the shape of a golden frog with extremely-large eyes.

“It doesn’t matter now,” Wilbur says. “We already know what it looks like. Come on, let’s return these to the Inspector.”

Tommy gathers the rest of the pieces up and keeps them safe in his pocket where they will not be seized by the wind. He and Wilbur then pad back to the hotel.

*

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> No Puzzles in this Chapter!


	7. The Road to Herzen Castle

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> revelations + an arduous journey

[As soon](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JsFuiEMxWQA&) as they step through the doors, Tommy notices that the whole gang has been gathered. Not just the irate Mr Beluga and his poor conductor Thunder, but also a disoriented Charlie Anderson and Tubbo. Bad and Skeppy are standing in the middle of the group, rattling off on something or other.

“What’s this?” Wilbur asks, stepping forth.

“Ah, Mr Soot! Perfect timing,” Bad says. “We were waiting for you.”

“Waiting for us? What’s this about?” Tommy asks. They take a seat beside Tubbo on the long couch. Tommy has never appreciated a plush couch as he did that instant. It’s truly been a while since he got the chance to sit and rest.

“Well, I think that someone here is involved in the murder of Sam Nook, who died because of the Elysian Box,” Bad says.

“Speaking of the Elysian Box, we’ve collected the pieces of the photograph,” Wilbur says. “Would you like them back?”

Tommy hands it over to Skeppy, who keeps it safe in _his_ pocket this time.

“The Elysian Box’s the thing with the goat on it, isn’t it?” Tubbo says.

“Yeah,” Tommy says, nodding.

“Hurry it up,” Mr Beluga says, the waning patience evident in his tone. “The longer we dilly-dally here the farther the Box is going to get.”

[Bad](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3gbWiFxMvNU&) clears his throat. “The only person who’d have made off with the Box has to be someone with a vested interest in it, and this muffinhead who stole the Box must have had access to Folsense, which is where Sam Nook obtained it from, to know that the good professor had it,” he says. “Putting these pieces together, the only person whom it could be is…you!”

He stabs a finger at Thunder, who leaps to his feet.

“What? Me? Not cool, man, not cool!” Thunder cries. “I don’t have the damn thing on me!”

“A search of your quarters in the hotel and aboard the Molentary Express will be enough to prove your guilt,” Skeppy says. “Tired of your uncle working you to the bone, you decided to steal the Box in order to keep him from getting what he wants most in the world. This is a crime of revenge. Isn’t that right?”

“I swear! I didn’t-!”

“Wait, you have it?” Charlie asks, brows furrowed.

“How could you, Sammy?” Mr Beluga screeches, jabbing at Thunder with his walking cane. “You better cough up the Box right this instant!”

“Just a moment,” Wilbur says, standing and walking over to Bad. “Sorry to disappoint, but Thunder is not the murderer.”

“What?” Skeppy purses his lips. “Do you have any evidence?”

“Perhaps. I had been suspecting of a single individual ever since we boarded the train at Dropstone,” Wilbur says. “And yet, said individual has only made an incriminating slip-up now.”

“A slip-up?” Tommy asks, fingers tightening on his kneecaps as he leans forward. Excitement thrums through him. He’d finally get to see Wilbur in action once again, with his awesome deduction skills. It’s always amazing no matter how many times he does it.

“And that person is you,” Wilbur says, pinning Tubbo with his steely gaze. “What do you have to say for yourself?”

Tubbo widens his eyes, holding up his hands defensively. “What do you mean, Wilbur?”

“Wait, so who’s the guy with the Box? I’m confused,” Charlie asks.

“It’s simple if we consider the premise that will lead us to the answer,” Wilbur says. “Can we all agree that whoever knows what the Elysian Box looks like must have either had it in their possession at some point in time or has seen a photograph of it before?”

Tommy nods. What’s he getting at?

“Tommy and I pieced together the photograph before coming back, and indeed, it does depict the Elysian Box,” Wilbur says. “Unfortunately, Tommy and I were the only ones present when we saw the full picture.”

“What does that have to do with anything?” Tubbo asks.

“Bad,” Wilbur says. “I’d like you to piece the photograph together and tell me what you see.”

Skeppy retrieves the photograph and lays the pieces on the table while the other people watch on with thinly-veiled interest. Very soon, the puzzle is complete, with only the centre piece, the one with the goat’s head on it, gone.

“It’s a frog,” Skeppy says, crossing his arms.

“Not quite,” Wilbur says. “It’s actually a goat, but you won’t know that simply because of the fact that the goat’s head is contained in the missing piece.”

“Wait, so-” Tommy starts. He stares at Tubbo, betrayal flooding through him. Did Tubbo truly…? Gentle, kind Tubbo who hails from St. Mystere?

Tubbo rises and laughs, his voice transforming instantly. With a single swift move, Tubbo rips off his disguise, dropping the polo shirt, jacket and jeans to the ground, revealing a familiar face.

“Fundy!” Tommy cries.

“What in the blazes-?” Mr Beluga shouts.

“Man, and I thought my disguise this time was perfect!” Fundy huffs. “Well, I failed to thwart you again, Wilbur, but believe me, I’m not going to fuck up n-”

[Before](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZWXHK0s5Dg&) Fundy can finish his sentence, Wilbur lunges at him, fingers closing around his throat. Both men tumble to the ground. Charlie, who had almost been in the way, leaps to his feet with a horrified yell.

“Wilbur! What are you doing?” Tommy eyes are wide, unable to tear his gaze away from the two brawling men.

Bad and Skeppy dive in, the former restraining Wilbur and dragging him away from a beaten Fundy on the ground. Fundy coughs and wheezes, fingers flying up to where Wilbur had been throttling him.

It’s as if the room froze over, temperature dropping by a couple of degrees. Tommy is rooted to the spot, unable to move, to even meet his friend’s eyes. Had Wilbur really tried…?

“What the fuck…” Fundy mutters. Skeppy fetches the pair of handcuffs hanging by his belt, about to snap it across Fundy’s wrist when Fundy kicks him in the stomach, shoving Skeppy off of him.

“I don’t know what the fuck’s going on, but I swear to God I didn’t kill anyone,” Fundy snarls. “When I entered that apartment, the man was already dead!”

Already dead? If Fundy isn’t the murderer, then…?

Without a second to lose, Fundy leaps to his feet and begins to run, disappearing out the hotel as quickly as his legs can take him.

“Wait! Come back!” Bad shouts and he and Skeppy take off after the criminal.

“If Tubbo is Fundy, then, where’s the real Tubbo?” Where _did_ his friend go? Or had the Tubbo who boarded the Molentary Express with them been the fake one all along?

“Back at Dropstone, probably,” Wilbur says. He’s calmed down some, chest still heaving, beads of sweat glistening on his forehead. “Fundy must have switched places with him when we were separated on our way back to the train.”

“Then he’s alright?”

“I’d say so. I think the residents of Dropstone are fine people,” Wilbur says, sighing. He runs a hand through his hair.

“Pardon me, sirs, but might this be the box you are looking for?”

The porter, clad smartly in his uniform, holds out what appears to be a wooden box, with all manner of jewels embedded on its lid. The goat emblazoned atop it gazes up at Tommy tauntingly.

[“That’s](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JsFuiEMxWQA&) the Elysian Box!”

Three hands make a grab for it, but Tommy is the fastest, hugging the Box to his chest while Charlie and Mr Beluga grasp at thin air.

“That Box rightly belongs to me, young man,” Mr Beluga says. “Hand it over.”

“Please, I really, really, _really_ need that Box,” Charlie says rather dramatically, a hand on his chest. “It’s something I can’t say, but…”

“Tommy, don’t hand it over,” Wilbur says. “We have to reveal the truth of the Box ourselves.”

Why are people so fixated on this damn thing, anyway? Why are they pursuing this fucking piece of plywood so fervently? Why is it so important to each of them?

This Box started their journey. Started the journey for the three stakeholders in this matter. Charlie had come into this journey unbeknownst to his father to pursue it for some unknown reason. Wilbur had been spurred by the death of a good friend, desperate for closure by deriving the truth of the cursed Box. Mr Beluga does have some connection to the Herzens, so if this Box truly belonged to them…

“Look at yourself, Mr Beluga,” the porter says. “You no longer have any right to the Herzens’ heirloom. Not after you cut all ties with your father fifty years ago.”

“What? You dare cross me?” Mr Beluga’s face has gone red with rage, knuckles white against his walking cane.

“I dare,” the porter says, folding his arms. “While I cannot speak for the other gentlemen, I can certainly stop you from using your ‘rights’ which you had revoked.”

Mr Beluga harrumphs and stands, stalking out of the hotel with the most dissatisfied expression, accompanied by his loyal nephew. Tommy feels somewhat sorry for Thunder, but what really matters now is whether he should hand it over to Charlie or Wilbur.

He has nothing against Charlie, but he isn’t sure what Wilbur would do if he refused to give the box to him now.

“Look man, I’ve got nothing against you,” Tommy says, eyeing Charlie warily while holding the Box up to Wilbur. “But I think…I think my friend might need this more than you do right now.”

It’s a bold claim to make, but the consequence is one that Tommy is willing to bear. Charlie presses his lips together but does not burst out angrily unlike Mr Beluga. Instead, he nods understandingly and stands.

“I get it. It’s cool,” Charlie says. “You guys…just take care of it, yeah? I might need it later, though.”

Well, that was easy. Charlie leaves, apparently having somewhere to be. He exits the hotel, now leaving Wilbur and Tommy alone in the lobby.

“Tommy,” Wilbur says, clutching the Box in his hand like a lifeline. Tommy swallows. Wilbur has never sounded so serious. Frankly, it is alarming. “I’m going to need you to stay here.”

“Why?”

“It’s dangerous,” Wilbur says, sighing, gazing wistfully at the Box. It is finally within their grasp, after a whole day of searching, after a whole week since the murder occurred. “Besides, it’s much too irresponsible of me to endanger your whole future like this.”

“No, Wilbur. I’m not letting you do this alone,” Tommy says, placing a hand on his shoulder. Wilbur’s jaw tics. However, he knows that no matter how hard he tries to push Tommy away, the boy’s just going to pester him to no end. If there’s one thing Tommy prides himself on, it’s his unyielding tenacity.

[Wilbur](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7t2AMjtVv28&) shuts the door to the hotel room and Tommy places the Box on the lone desk. The Elysian Box kills all that open its lid. That is how the myth works. That could very well be what killed Sam Nook.

But that is all there is, isn’t it? A myth? They are not going to die. Absolutely not. They are going to open the Box and find out just what’s hidden within. They will emerge from this totally unscathed and Wilbur would figure everything out.

Wilbur lays his finger upon the clasp of the Box. He is trembling, Tommy realizes. Breaths laboured, shoulders stiff.

Wilbur’s afraid.

Fuck, who wouldn’t be? When they are staring death in the face.

“It’ll be…We’ll be fine,” Tommy says, swallowing the lump in his throat. “We’re going to live and figure out the Box’s secret.”

Wilbur nods, still quiet, and lifts the lid. They’re not going to die. They’re going to live and tell the tale and be the very first people to-

Nothing happens.

The Box is open, but nothing happens. Tommy stares at the Box’s hollow interior, devoid of any contents. He flips the Box around. On its belly stands two people upside-down, facing away from each other with a sun in the middle. What’s this all about?

More importantly, they are still alive! Alive and breathing! Tommy pinches himself to make sure it is not just a dream.

Wilbur appears as stunned as he is, holding the Box up and inspecting it from every angle. There is nothing – besides those strange carvings, that is. Not on its sides or on the lid…

[“Wilbur!](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6o96ppnVOF0) We’re alive!” Tommy doesn’t know how to express his jubilance, the thrill of having survived certain doom. Doom to everyone else before them.

But then this presents a question. Why them? Are they special in some way?

“The Box…was never a killing device,” Wilbur says, tossing it onto the table with a loud rattle. “The deaths were induced by something else.”

“Then what killed them?” Tommy asks.

“That’s what…we have to find out, by pursuing the only lead we have,” Wilbur says. “But before we head there, there’s somewhere else I’d like to go.”

“Where is that?”

“The mines, Tommy,” Wilbur says. “There’s something about that story that plagues me.”

“The story of Folsense?”

“Exactly. The entire town was closed because of a strange illness that struck the town,” Wilbur says. “And this illness spread after a certain mining incident. I think the origins of the Box is intricately linked with the truth of this town.”

“Alright,” Tommy says, straightening his shoulders. They have survived the curse of the Box. They can take on anything as long as they are together.

*

[The](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dbi9O2qucO4) mines lie past a winding forest path, moonlight shaded by the thick canopies hanging over their heads. Lanterns dangle from the branches, illuminating their way to the mines.

In any case, the spring in Wilbur’s step seems to have returned. Maybe he has had an epiphany. Maybe he has got this whole peculiar situation figured out. Moulding signs nailed to tree trunks keep them on the right track, but the gnarled claws of the trees invite eerie images in Tommy’s head, like something could jump out at him at any moment now.

“We’re here.”

If not for the lamps casting their brilliant glow, Tommy would never have approached such a frightening hole in the wall. Abandoned minecarts lie on their sides, coal spilling onto the ground. Snaking rails run right into the mine.

Well, there is no time like the present to go exploring. In a mine, of all places. Wilbur takes the lead and Tommy keeps at his heels, not wanting to be left alone with the shadows outside.

Very soon, they encounter their first obstacle: a lock in the form of a grid covered in coloured lines, placed upon the door, keeping them from moving further into the mine. Tommy sighs. Whoever designed this mine is definitely making it terribly difficult for themselves.

[ ** <Puzzle: Maze of Doors> ** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcs066Q4rvU&)

The grid shows a set of rooms, each fitted with at least one door, as represented by the multicoloured lines. The doors only open when pushed from one direction, as shown.

It is impossible to pass through every room while going through the maze from the entrance to the exit given this current setup. However, if one of the doors could open in the opposite direction, this feat would be possible. Which door is it?

Well, Tommy was not expecting many clues for this one. Wilbur works this out quickly, tapping on the required door. With that, the actual door swings open and allows them entry down a dusty corridor that leads them to an elevator.

Unfortunately, the elevator appears to be out of order, and the next trial presents itself.

** <Puzzle: The Gear Switch> **

** **

To start the elevator, they would need to close the circuit. By inspecting the gears arranged, they would need to move the knob either left or right.

It is not too difficult, and Wilbur solves the puzzle successfully by pulling the knob to the left. With a dull clunk, the elevator begins to descend beneath the earth, its rattling and cranking a mild cause for concern.

Despite Tommy’s worry, they reach the bottom of the mine shaft, stepping out of the elevator into a strange, little room.

It could be just Tommy, but the smell of the mist is overpowering here.

Wilbur approaches the only point of interest in the room – a pentagonal-shaped safe fitted at the furthest end of the room. It appears to be guarded with a lock, one which they’d need to solve if they want to gain access to its contents.

** <Puzzle: The Old Safe> **

[ ](https://layton.fandom.com/wiki/Puzzle:The_Old_Safe?file=DB081.png)

The safe can be opened with a four-digit code. Only the digits 0 to 5 can be used, but each can only be used once. The small lights next to each row of digits tells them how much in common the row has with the code.

A white light indicates a digit that is in the code but in a different place in the sequence. An orange light indicates a digit that is in the code and in the correct spot.

Even Wilbur takes a while with this one. Still, he figures it out before Tommy can even begin solving it: 0154, and spins the dials till the numbers match.

What lies inside the safe is nothing like Tommy expected. In fact, he is not quite certain what he expected, to be honest. Shiny rocks, perhaps? The legacy of a town eradicated by sickness.

[Wilbur](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JsFuiEMxWQA&) retrieves the only item stored in that vault – a leatherbound book frayed and dampened with age. It looks so old that even holding it in their hands could cause it to disintegrate before their very eyes.

“There’s no name,” Wilbur says, flipping the book around, searching for an indication as to the identity of the owner. He opens the book up to the first page, the ink all smudged, page blotched with brown. The messy scrawl makes the writing near-unbearable to read.

“‘I cannot remain any longer. Yet I cannot leave my family behind to fend for themselves. A dilemma has presented itself to me, one that may mean life or death for myself, my wife and my child.’”

“This must belong to one of the miners who worked here fifty years ago,” Wilbur deduces.

Tommy reads on. “‘Duke Herzen has yet to call off the expedition, but ruin has already begun to plague the town. I can only pray, with all my heart, that God may be able to deliver us from this pestilence, to forgive us of our sins that wrought this punishment upon our humble home.’”

“The plague had already started to spread when this was written,” Wilbur says. “And it had something to do with the mining expedition that Duke Herzen wanted to carry out.”

“‘Are the precious metals of this land truly worth the lives of those who enter to extract them? I shall leave this diary here a remembrance to those who’ve given up their lives and their future for the whims of the powerful.’”

“So the Duke was forcing people to mine for his own riches? Even when there was a disease going around:? That’s fucked up, man,” Tommy huffs. “That’s really fucked up.”

“It is,” Wilbur says. “But doesn’t this seem strange to you?”

“Yeah. Tommy nods.

The glaring discrepancy had been staring straight at them the whole time, but Tommy had not had the chance to ponder it or to even come up with an explanation. Then there is the matter of Charlie. What connection might he have with the Herzens?

“Now that we’re done here, I say we make our way to the castle,” Wilbur says. “The place that I believe will hold all the answers to our questions. Come on, Tommy. Let us relieve ourselves of these burdens before the sun rises.”

Tommy nods, following Wilbur out of the mine, back up the unreliable elevator which brings them up aboveground. The overwhelming smell of the mist has now dissipated. Or, at least, it is not as strong as it had been down in the mineshaft.

The duo circles the fence that keeps them from the forest, until they find a dirt path that leads out of the town, carving a slim road through the forest overgrown with undergrowth and foliage. Broken lanterns lie on the ground, shards of glass scattered all over the ground.

The only unfortunate issue is that there is a giant gate, at least twice as tall as Tommy is, blocking their only way into the forest that will bring them closer to the castle.

“How’re we going to get in?” Tommy asks. There is no way they can climb over the fence – they resemble spears at their tip, much too sharp to even try. Moreover, the threat of tetanus is so very real. Wilbur taps his chin, pursing his lips as he thinks.

“Do you recall when we eavesdropped on the Inspector’s interrogation with that woman?” Wilbur asks.

“Yeah?”

“They mentioned a cart, did they not? The gate would open for a cart that delivers supplies to the castle every day at midnight.”

Tommy glances at his phone. It’s almost approaching that time, the glowing numbers staring mockingly up at him.

“Only a few minutes left,” Wilbur says. “Let us wait and watch.”

They pick a spot in a bush, thorny stems and branches pricking at their skin. Tommy’s breath catches in his throat as he keeps watch on the path, waiting for the cart that is due to arrive on squeaky wheels.

All of a sudden, he hears it. The tell-tale neigh of a horse and the clip-clop of hooves against the rugged earth. From their hiding place, he can see a wagon, a cart, rolling along the path, stopping for a mere moment as the gate screeches, swinging open to allow the cart through.

The cart trundles along, unsuspecting of their presence. Tommy and Wilbur emerge from their hiding place, standing before the metal gate that sways in the wind.

[Without](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mE-QE4_73KU) a word, Wilbur takes the first brave step into a mystifying and spooky woodland. Tommy has never quite had the chance to experience being in a forest as thick as this. The chittering of bats sends chills down his spine, each crack of a twig on the road a jolt through his veins.

And yet, Wilbur does not seem affected by this at all, least of all the penetrating darkness. That is, until they reach a point where it is virtually impossible to see anything unless they find a source of light.

What luck! Tommy spies, lying on its side on the ground is a lantern not dissimilar to the ones they’d seen on their way to the mineshaft. Accompanying it is a box of matches, its age evident on the box’s state of rot.

Tommy digs it from the ground, opening the box and nearly dropping it when an ear-piercing shriek when an eight-legged fiend leaps from within. Wilbur stifles a chuckle as he picks the box up and looks over the matches. Tommy wills the terrible, ticklish sensation from where the spider had touched him with its offensive, hairy feet.

Wilbur picks out a match that does not look rotted. Tommy gets to work scooping the lanterns from the ground. Now, it’s time to hang them up to light their way.

[ ** <Puzzle: Light The Way> ** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcs066Q4rvU)

<https://layton.fandom.com/wiki/Puzzle:Light_the_Forest_1?file=DB121.png>

For each lamp, its light reaches to the end of any straight road. They’ve only got four lamps on their person. Where should the lights go?

After marking out the locations in their heads, Tommy and Wilbur get to work, hanging the lamps up and lighting their wick, most of them still long enough to burn for a while.

The forest seems a lot less frightening once the lamps are up and lit. With the forest track now illuminated, chasing the scary shadows away, the duo presses on, soon coming to the creaky bridge that Tommy saw from the town. Over on the other end of the chasm is the castle, and Tommy would be lying if he said that he isn’t afraid in the slightest.

“Wilbur, do you think this bridge can hold our weight?” Tommy asks, eyeing the bridge suspiciously. Wilbur strides confidently onto the bridge, literally a strip of dangling planks with only a thin yarn-like string as a handhold. A blustering gust of wind and a careless slip can send them tumbling into the abyss below.

“What’s the matter?” Wilbur asks, turning around and looking right at home on that bridge. Tommy’s heart leaps to his throat. Wilbur has always been rather brave, but Tommy never knew that he can be this reckless.

“Just put one foot in front of the other, and you’ll be fine,” Wilbur says, holding his arms out as if tending to a toddler. “Come on. I’m right here, Tommy.”

Tommy gulps, trying his best to stop the tremors in his knees. He can do this. He has to.

** <Puzzle: A Rickety Bridge> **

<https://layton.fandom.com/wiki/Puzzle:A_Rickety_Bridge?file=DB100.png>

Stiff with fear at the thought of tumbling into the chasm below, Tommy can only move in increment of one or three planks at a time. The narrowness of the bridge prevents him from doubling back the way he came or switching the foot he’s standing on before stepping forward.

All Tommy really needs to do is to find a way across the bridge, safe and sound. He takes a sharp breath and gives it a go.

The journey begins well, each foot making contact with the planks for less than a second before Tommy’s leaping through the air, the force of his landings keeping the bridge unsteady and swaying.

Wilbur has already made it to the other end, watching as Tommy bounds over, wanting to get this over and done with.

[“Tommy!”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mE-QE4_73KU) Wilbur shouts.

Out of the blue, the bridge swings violently at the whims of the wind. Tommy lurches forward, body sailing through the air. A pair of strong arms catch him, keeping him from stumbling over the edge of the bridge to his untimely demise.

Tommy’s heart races at a mile a minute, the rush of blood the only thing in his ears. He staggers to his feet, legs wobbly as he tries to right himself with Wilbur as a crutch.

“Oh my God.” Tommy’s chest constricts. One second slower and he would have plunged to his death, broken body lying on a forest floor, his corpse a hub of activity for bugs and toadstools. “Wilbur, did you see that?”

“I did. You should be more careful next time,” Wilbur says, an unconcealed flood of relief in his tone. He helps Tommy stand, and it is then that Tommy realizes they are standing right outside the castle, inches from its heavyset wooden gates.

Where had the cart gone? Surely it hadn’t managed to cross that bridge? The wooden planks would have collapsed under the weight of the steeds alone! Well, that doesn’t matter now, not when the place of reckoning stands before them. Does a vampire really live here? Does Herzen Castle contain the answers they need?

Unafraid, Wilbur walks right up to the gates and raps his knuckles upon them. There is nary a response for a couple of seconds before the door swings inwards to reveal a middle-aged woman in a distinguished housekeeper’s uniform.

“Welcome,” she says, the wrinkles on her face prominent even in the dim lighting. “You must be Duke Herzen’s guests.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Puzzle(s) in this Chapter:  
> Maze of Doors  
> The Gear Switch  
> The Old Safe   
> Light the Way  
> A Rickety Bridge


	8. An Encounter at the End of the Line

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> confronting duke anton herzen

[Duke](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YB5U__w_mbM) Herzen? Didn’t that guy die ages ago? But…oh, she probably meant his son. The other guy who wasn’t Mr Beluga. What was his name again?

“We never did inform him that we were coming.”

“He was expecting you,” the woman says, opening the door wider for them to walk right through. The grand hall looks like it’s come straight out of a historical documentary, its walls decorated with elaborate carvings, gargoyles and statues that really accentuate the eccentricity of the occupants. Strolling down the hallway, following the housekeeper, is somewhat unsettling. It is as if there are eyes on him, no matter where he goes.

It’s more than unsettling – it’s terrifying. What if the vampire is using these statues to spy on them?

“You must be hungry,” the housekeeper says. “The master has invited you to dinner, and we’ve prepared a full-course meal in honour of your coming.”

We? Who’s we? It seems like the only people living here are the housekeeper and her master, Duke Herzen.

The corridor turns at the end, taking them to a grand dining hall with the longest table that Tommy has ever seen. Just a tad shorter than the ones in Hogwarts. There are plates of food laid out across the whole length of it, the wafting aroma a welcome escape from the mist’s stench.

Duke Herzen is seated at the very end of the table, an imposing fellow, fingers clasped before him. The flickering flame of the candlestick imbues a sense of romanticism into this dinner, but otherwise casts uncanny shadows upon his face. He wears a coat in a style too outdated to be real in this day and age, resembling that of a…vampire’s, like those one sees in movies.

Tommy recognizes this man. He’s seen that mug before, the young, unblemished face of the late Duke Herzen’s elder son, Anton Herzen. Unlike Mr Beluga, he has hardly changed at all, maintaining his youthful self even fifty years after that photograph was taken.

Perhaps the townspeople were right all along; Anton is a vampire through and through.

“Welcome to my humble abode,” the Duke says, gesturing to the only other seats at the table, wooden chairs with elaborate carvings on its backrests, arms and legs at the other end. Tommy and Wilbur seat themselves, the luxuriant-looking bowls of soup and plates of roast pork somehow…unappetizing.

Tommy’s stomach complains loudly. He hasn’t had the time to sit down and eat ever since stepping foot in Folsense, now that he’s thought about it. He’s downright famished. How could the man know that they are coming and have prepared a feast beforehand?

“I know why you’re here,” Anton says. “You are pursuing the trail of the Elysian Box, aren’t you?”

How did he…?

“Quite right,” Wilbur says without missing a beat. “We’re hoping you could help us shed some light on the matter.”

Anton chortles. “I see you’ve done your homework. You must be very determined. The journey from town is a treacherous one.”

“It was.”

“Well then,” Anton says. “I shall provide you the answers you desire over our delicious meal.”

The meal is nothing short of delicious, betraying Tommy’s expectations in every way imaginable. The soup swirls with a hazy broth, bits of mushroom and clam bobbing at the surface. The salad is crisp, slathered with a generous amount of Caesar sauce. The pork is tender and sweet, honey-glazed skin glisteningly golden in the candlelight.

Wilbur, on the other hand, has barely touched his food, poking at the slice of meat with a fork. His mind is preoccupied, what with his back-and-forth with Anton Herzen about the Box in question.

“The Box is, sadly, not in my possession,” Anton says. “Years ago, it had been stolen from me. It is, of course, a prized family heirloom, so there were no doubts that people had desired it for nothing but its monetary value.”

“I see,” Wilbur says. “Do you know who took it?”

“Of course not. Had I known, the Box would have returned to me and they would not be alive,” Anton says, a hint of a snarl dancing on his lips. “That Box is very important to me, Professor. More important than my life itself.”

Is the Herzen family honour that significant to him? For a family heirloom to be more important than the Box…

“If we’re done here,” Anton says, raising a hand to call for his housekeeper, “I suggest you stay in one of the guest rooms tonight. The wilderness does not take kindly to those who travel in the dark.”

The housekeeper bows and urges Wilbur and Tommy to follow her. It had been strange that Anton cut the conversation short like that, and Tommy knows that Wilbur thinks it too. Either way, they find themselves following the housekeeper once more down a twisting set of stairs and heading up the groaning staircase to the second floor.

Their room is cosy, reminding Tommy of a guest room straight out of a castle. It’s sparsely-furnished, with two beds separated by a bedside table and an unlit candle. A fireplace is carved into the centre of the wall on their right, a ticking clock placed upon the mantlepiece as the flames sizzle the charcoal. Warmth seeps under Tommy’s skin as he approaches the crackling fire.

Out the window, Tommy can see the rise and fall of hills and valleys, train tracks set upon the boundless expanse of grass and forests. Frost stains the window, spreading like a natural curtain of ice. Tommy looks over at Wilbur, who is peering at a painting framed on the wall.

“What’s that?” Tommy asks, padding over, the wooden floorboards groaning under his weight.

“The Duke,” Wilbur says. “And this woman must be his wife.”

The woman in the portrait dances with Anton, his arm around her as they waltz on the dance floor, the grandest chandelier hovering over their heads and casting the most luminous shine upon the room. She’s dressed nobly, a pink ball gown layered with white frills draped over her petite frame.

“Did his wife die?” Why are their adventures plagued with dead wives?

“Perhaps. We haven’t seen her at all,” Wilbur says.

“Or maybe…” Tommy mumbles, trying to shrug that thought from his head. “Maybe she’s…you know, with him being a vampire and all…”

“Possibly.”

The more Tommy stares at the photograph, the more alluring and real it seems. As if he’s being sucked into the magical setting of a ball that took place in this very castle fifty years ago.

Then, suddenly, he is.

[No](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wmJh6Uv9ENg) longer are they standing in the cosy guest room. Rather they’ve been transported to what seems to be fifty years in the past, to that same ballroom where Anton and his wife is engaging in the most romantic of waltzes. They step and sway to the slow music, the most charming couple that takes centre stage and puts the other dancers to shame.

Where the heck are they? What’s happened? Why are they…?

The moment is broken as soon as the woman notices their presence. The music halts abruptly. The lights dim, the only glow in the room the stunning scarlet of the eyes of the other guests. They snarl, revealing sets of gleaming, razor fangs.

Vampires.

Tommy’s back bumps against Wilbur’s as the coven closes in around them, forming a circle that leave them with no way of escape. Anton smiles, squeezing the woman’s shoulder gently.

“Don’t worry, dear. They’re of no threat to us,” Anton says. He strides over to them, the vampires parting to let him pass. Tommy’s so nervous his entire body must have frozen over, rendering him completely immobile.

Anton grins, specks of blood splattered upon his own set of fangs.

“They’re the main course for the night.”

*

[Tommy](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZWXHK0s5Dg&) gasps as he awakens from the dream – or was it a nightmare? – and finds that he and Wilbur are both trussed up and tossed in a dank, dark room, watched over by a smiling Anton.

“I see you’ve awakened,” Anton says.

“Oh my God, are you actually a vampire?” Tommy struggles against his binds. The rough ropes are tight around his arms, keeping them immobile. “You’re actually a vamp, aren’t you? Like with fangs and shit?”

Anton chuckles. “Believe what you will. Just know that you won’t escape this castle alive.”

“I don’t quite get why,” Wilbur says calmly and slowly, “you’d do this. There’s no reason behind your actions…”

“Isn’t it obvious? You’re snooping too much, Professor Soot and friend,” Anton says. “Why do you care so much about the Elysian Box anyway? It’s of no value to you.”

“My friend was murdered by that Box,” Wilbur says, ice in his tone. “I have a right to know the secrets it guards!”

“That’s hogwash, and you know it,” Anton growls. “You don’t know the significance behind that box, and you never will.”

Without another word, Anton turns his back on them and strides down the hall. Wilbur wriggles his shoulders, the coiled ropes slipping just a bit from around his arms.

“Wilbur, we’re not going to die here, right? That prick’s got to be lying!”

Wilbur bites his lip. “I vowed, Tommy, that as long as I live, Tommy, I will not to let any harm come to you.” He pauses. “Besides, I promised your mother.”

Wriggling a little more, Wilbur seems to be able to loosen the ropes just a tiny bit more.

“Wilbur…” Panic begins to rise in Tommy’s chest. “We’re totally going to die here. We’re going to-” All of a sudden, the room is so small, as if caving in on them. His throat seizes, his heart thundering in his chest. Wilbur seems to be speaking, but his voice is just so far away-

“Tommy!” Wilbur hisses, jabbing the balls of his feet against Tommy’s calf, snapping him out of the sudden onset of hysteria. “Tommy, I’m going to need you to listen to me, alright? Deep breaths, Tommy, deep breaths.”

Even in such a situation, Wilbur remains so calm and collected. He does not fret, does not kick nor scream in fear. Even as he attempts to free himself from his constrains, albeit incredibly slowly, he’s kept his own fear at bay and is doing his best to distract Tommy from the situation.

“Why not have a puzzle, Tommy?” Wilbur says with a grunt.

“A puzzle, Wilbur? At a time like this?” Tommy’s voice is wobbly; he can’t help it.

“It’s at times like this that one must keep a clear mind,” Wilbur says. “Think of it as a cleanse of thought.”

Well, maybe he’d indulge Wilbur a bit. The man seems to have a plan in mind.

[ ** <Puzzle: Sharing Paintings> ** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcs066Q4rvU&)

“Okay, so two brothers have inherited their parents’ five-piece art collection. According to their will, the older brother will get a set of paintings worth twice what the younger brother gets. To ascertain the value of the paintings, the brothers called in a valuer. According to the valuer, right, the paintings amount to twenty-thousand, forty-five-thousand, fifty-five-thousand, sixty-thousand and ninety-five-thousand pounds.”

“That’s a whole lot of numbers, Wilbur.”

“Enough numbers to keep your brain busy,” Wilbur says dismissively. “For his services, the valuer was promised the one painting left over after the brothers divided the art according to their parents’ wishes. Assuming that individual paintings can’t be divided, which one does the valuer get?”

This one takes a while, with Tommy struggling to focus on doing mental sums in his head. By the time he’s come up with the answer - the most expensive painting - Wilbur’s already freed himself from the ropes and is helping Tommy untie his.

[“Very good,](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZWXHK0s5Dg&)” Wilbur says. Tommy rubs at the sore spots on his upper arms, relishing in the rush of blood through his veins once more.

“How were _you_ able to get out?” Tommy asks, as Wilbur glances around the room.

“The ropes aren’t tied as tightly as one would when trying to seriously restrain a captive,” Wilbur says. “I do believe that Anton does not actually want to kill us.”

“What? Why? Doesn’t he want to drain our blood and shit?”

“Absolutely not,” Wilbur says, getting on his knees to inspect a loose piece of cardboard on the wall. He tears it off, rusty nail and all, revealing a small crawlspace behind it.

Unfortunately for them, it is blocked off by a barred grate held in place by a lock. On the lock is a puzzle, instructions for the passcode pinned to the wall.

[ ** <Puzzle: The Fake Coins> ** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcs066Q4rvU&)

“‘There are ten coins in each of five bags. One of these bags is filled with fake coins that are lighter than the real ones. A real coin weighs ten grams, but a fake coin is one gram lighter. Using a scale that can register up to two-hundred grams, what is the fewest number of times you can use the scale to find the one bag filled with fake coins?’” Tommy reads.

“It’s tricky, but the answer’s one,” Wilbur says. He inputs the number and the lock falls away, allowing the both of them passage through that tiny space. Wilbur is the first to squeeze himself through, while Tommy wiggles in after him.

[The](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZWXHK0s5Dg&) ventilation shaft is one long tunnel, with slight twists and turns that deliver them into another room, one with a giant hole in the ground and copious amounts of mists pouring out. Multitudes of equipment surround the hole, the metal structures crusted with dirt and rust. Tommy pinches the bridge of his nose as they approach the hole.

“What’s all this?”

“It’s probably where they mined for ore. You know those shiny stones,” Wilbur says, waving the mist from his face. “Come on now; we don’t want to have to be here longer than necessary.”

Tommy has to agree. They should leave as soon as possible. All this talk about vampires and random illnesses is really getting to him. He isn’t quite sure whether he can sleep ever again.

“Oh fuck.” Wilbur hisses.

Tommy can see why. Having made their way around the hole, Tommy notices the next problem that presents itself: There are many, _many_ doors, each probably leading to different rooms and corridors. It’ll take forever to try them all, and if they happen to run into Anton or his creepy housekeeper along the way…

[ ** <Puzzle: The Hidden Door> ** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcs066Q4rvU&)

“What’s that?”

Tommy points out a brown wooden sign affixed above a door, bold black lettering written upon it: Begin from the doors etched in the décor, a path will appear strong and quite clear, made of stars that flare, each within its own square.

“Décor, they say?” Wilbur says. Now that Tommy thinks about it, the wall _does_ have a strange pattern. He may not have noticed it before, but the poem has made the glittering stars on the walls as clear as day.

[ ](https://layton.fandom.com/wiki/Puzzle:The_Hidden_Door?file=DB136.png)

“It’s this one,” Wilbur says, taking the lead as he pushes open a green door, its bottom edge scraping against the wooden floor. Tommy follows Wilbur through, the duo finding themselves at the foot of a staircase. Climbing it brings them to the grand hall, a familiar figure standing at the entrance to the castle.

[“Charlie?”](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YB5U__w_mbM&) Wilbur sounds surprised. “What are you doing here?”

“Hey, Professor.” Charlie steps through the doors, letting it swing shut behind him.

“It’s dangerous,” Tommy says, arms flailing as he attempts to convey the sheer horrors they’ve just gone through. “You have to go back!”

“Go back? No way,” Charlie says, straightening his jacket. “I’m here for…personal reasons.”

“Does this have anything to do with the Elysian Box?” Wilbur asks.

Charlie shrugs. “Something like that.”

Just then, a lilting voice speaks from atop the grand staircase. Wilbur and Tommy spin on their heels to find Anton standing there, descending the staircase with a confused frown gracing his features.

“You’re…who are you?” Anton asks, eyes pinning Charlie, as if trying to recall something. Something important. “You seem familiar, but I cannot put my finger on this feeling…”

“I’m…” Charlie’s Adam apple bobs uncertainly. “I’m your grandson.”

“My…” Anton pauses for a mere second before he throws his head back and laughs. “You’re my grandson! That is the most humorous joke I’ve heard in ages.”

Charlie stands his ground, shaking his head. “Grandfather, you have to believe me! Sophia was my grandmother.”

“Sophia…” Anton folds his arms. “How do you know that name?”

Sophia? Tommy feels like he’s heard that somewhere before...

“She’s my grandmother, and you’re my grandfather,” Charlie says, stepping forward, stiffer with hesitation.

“That’s utter nonsense!” Anton shouts, voice reverberating throughout the grand hall. “Don’t you see how young I am? How can I be anyone’s grandfather? Unless…”

Anton draws the sword resting at his belt – when the hell did that get there? – and makes a slash at Charlie. Wilbur is quick on his feet, grabbing Charlie by the arm and pulling him away, out of the path of the blade.

Anton slices thin air, the blade cutting through nothing. He twirls on the balls of his feet and Wilbur steps between him and Charlie.

“Sophia left me. She mentioned someone else more important to her and she left me for him!” Anton shouts, the anguish evident in his voice. “You must be that man!”

“Why don’t you listen to him?” Wilbur says evenly. “He’s speaking the truth, Anton!”

“Shut up!” Anton hisses, brandishing the length of cold metal. “So, you’re willing to defend him, are you, Professor?”

Defend him? That goes without saying!

Anton sweeps his arm towards a display of weapons, encompassing everything inclusive of swords, halberds, spears, suits of armours and more.

“You may choose whichever you like,” Anton says. “But I must tell you that all of them, but one, are fake. Remember, a true knight keeps his blade in hand.”

Wilbur presses his lips together. “Tommy, take care of Charlie.”

“What? You’re not actually going to fight him, are you, Wilbur? You’re an academic, not some fucking sword-swinging lunatic!”

“Yeah, Wilbur! It’s not worth risking your life over-!” Charlie cries, cut off with a blade stabbed in his direction.

“You,” Anton snarls. “Not another word out of you.”

Wilbur approaches the display. It’s time to make a choice.

[ ** <Puzzle: One True Sword> ** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tcs066Q4rvU&)

A true knight keeps his sword in hand. That is the only clue that Wilbur’s got to go off on. If he chooses poorly, they’re going to end up dead.

Which blade should he choose?

There’s no time to deliberate. Trusting his instincts, Wilbur reaches for the only sword that Anton has hinted him towards. With a satisfied smile on his face, Anton raises his sword as well and begins his duel.

[Their](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZWXHK0s5Dg&) steps are fast and precise, each strike ringing out in the otherwise-quiet hall. When the hell did Wilbur ever learn swordplay? He never struck Tommy as the type.

Anton ducks, jabbing the sword at Wilbur, the tip of his blade missing him by inches. Wilbur counters with a diagonal slash which Anton parries, the two of them locked in a round of elegant combat that even takes them up the stairs, metal clanging in the dead of night.

Wilbur grunts, gritting his teeth as he and Anton are caught in a deadlock, neither willing to give in. Yet, Wilbur overpowers Anton easily, the man stumbling back, seemingly out of breath. Wilbur assumes a defensive stance once more in case Anton decides to launch a surprise attack.

“Grandfather! Stop! Your body can’t take it!” Charlie begins to run up the stairs, taking it two at a time.

“I think,” Wilbur says, “it’s time for you to accept the truth, Duke Herzen. Your beloved Sophia is dead.”

“Stop spouting lies! She’s not dead! You’re a dirty liar!”

Rage boils in Anton, evident from the random swings of his sword, making his movements ever so unpredictable. One lucky slice sends Wilbur’s blade spinning into the air, leaving him disarmed.

“Grandfather! Please stop!” Charlie dashes forth, an arm outstretched. Tommy makes after him, feet thumping hard on the carpet.

Wilbur has hardly any time to react before Anton’s next swing cuts the chain of the chandelier dangling over the grand hall. The chandelier crashes to the ground, taking the crumbling ceiling with it. The ramshackle castle begins to fall apart, the dated walls collapsing into rubble and debris, spraying dirt and dust everywhere.

“Tommy, are you alright?” Wilbur sidesteps a brick that tumbles from above, accompanied by slabs of concrete. With the sudden lack of light, Tommy can’t quite tell what’s happening around him. Everything passes in a flash. One moment Charlie’s reached Anton, the next, Anton has transformed into a man with a head of silver hair, wrinkled face partially concealed by rubble. Finally, Wilbur shoves the both of them away from an incoming piece of debris.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Puzzle(s) in this Chapter:  
> Sharing Paintings  
> The Fake Coins  
> The Hidden Door  
> One True Sword


	9. Epilogue: Pandora's Box

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> drawing the curtains

[Tommy](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M6T0y9gN-kQ) falls to the ground, landing harshly on his rear. He yelps, an arrow of pain shooting up his spine. Wilbur remains beside him, unharmed as well. Tommy sniffs the air. It could be just him, but the atmosphere smells way cleaner now, cleared of the mist that had blanketed Folsense.

Speaking of Folsense… Glancing down the ragged bridge they had crossed, over the sea of trees and forests, is Folsense in all its lacklustre glory. No longer is it the bustling insomniac town that they had explored. Instead, it has been reduced to the ghost town that it now is, abandoned by those who survived the deadly plague that struck the settlement.

“Wait, Wilbur, what happened? Where did Folsense go?”

“It has been that way since fifty years ago,” Wilbur says. “Save the people who arrived on the Molentary Express, everyone else we’d talked with, every place we’d been was merely a figment of our imaginations.”

“I don’t get it, Wilbur!” Tommy complains.

“When the mines were ravaged for stone and ore, the miners had dug into a vein of gas, one that when breathed in, produced a hallucinogenic effect,” Wilbur says. “This had been the very same gas that we breathed in the very instant we stepped out onto Folsense station. The gas is heavily reliant on our cognition.”

“Cognition?”

“Do you recall the photographs on the signboard at Folsense station?” Wilbur asks. “They had depicted the Folsense from fifty years ago. Upon having a vague picture of Folsense in our heads, we proceeded to breathe in the gas, which made us believe that the town we’d been walking through had truly been inhabited with people. Now that the gas is forever buried with the Herzens’ castle, we can be rest assured that it would not harm anyone anymore.”

“What the fuck.” Tommy can’t help but notice fragments of Folsense that they’d travelled through, from the mines to the hotel to the museum. They had been walking through a ghost town the whole time, breathing in the mist that surrounded the place.

“We’d better get a thorough health examination when we get back.”

Tommy turns back to the rising sun. Standing there, amidst the collection of rubble is the grandfather-grandson duo, the scene surreal when bathed in the rays of the morning sun. Anton seems almost incapable of standing upright, requiring Charlie’s support. He is much more subdued than he had been, in shock as he stares down at his hands, as if unable to believe the sight before him.

[“So](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4d1Ypv7twTU) it’s true.” Anton shakes his head. His voice is raspy, a strange sound to the ears. “I really am…Sophia is…”

“The life she spoke about wasn’t another man,” Charlie says solemnly. “It was the little life growing inside of her. Since the illness killed all that it infected, my grandmother could not risk staying in the town. But she knew that because of your position as the heir to Folsense, you couldn’t have just abandoned your family and left. That’s why she never did tell you about my mother.”

“And that babe…”

“Was yours and Sophia’s child.”

“And that makes you my…grandson.” Anton’s chuckle is watery. “How absurd. To think that I’ve lived my past fifty years in complete ignorance of this…”

Wilbur rummages through his pockets, grasping something heavy in his hand. He walks up to the pair, holding out the Elysian Box.

“I thought you’d might like this back,” Wilbur says.

Anton reaches for it, closing his knobbly fingers around it. “This is…this is how Sophia and I communicated back in the past. We’d put our letters in this Box and send it on its way, but because of its value, it’s been the target of many a bandit.”

“Wait, but that’s the box that killed everyone who opened it, right?” Tommy says.

“Not quite.” Wilbur shakes his head. “What I suspect is that some of the mist from Folsense leaked from the Box when people open it.”

“That’s quite correct. To prevent its contents from falling into the wrong hands. It’s a defence mechanism of a peculiar sort,” Anton says. “We spread the rumours that if you open the Box, you’d die. But the truth is that you won’t.”

“What does the gas have to do with it?” Charlie asks.

“When you believe you’re going to die, then the gas would certainly induce a state of near-death,” Anton says. “That way, we can keep prying eyes and hands away from this gem.”

“But there’s nothing in there, though,” Tommy mutters. “It’s an empty box.”

Anton chortles, this time more amused than condescending. “That’s because there’s another way to open it, although I doubt this box ever reached Sophia. We’d probably find the letter I wrote still inside.”

Anton hands the box over to Charlie who receives it with mild surprise written all over his face.

“Me?”

“It’s only fitting,” Anton says.

The final puzzle lies before them. The final puzzle that would close this whole case once and for all.

[ ** <Puzzle: The Elysian Box> ** ](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WCZ-_U3md4I)

“The trick to open it is this:

The sun rises when you and I meet, and when the wind blows, you will know my heart.”

Charlie looks down at the engravings on the Box’s underbelly. Two people flipped upside-down face away from each other, wooden models movable upon touch, with a wooden sun placed below them.

Charlie rotates the wooden models, till the two people face each other, and slides the wooden sun such that it is high above their heads, revealing a tiny hole behind it.

_When the wind blows, you will know my heart._

Charlie blows gently into the hole, and the Box clicks open, revealing a secret compartment beneath the main one. Out of it falls a piece of paper, pristine and untouched.

“Here.” Charlie holds it out to his grandfather, who can only stare at it.

“This is not my letter,” Anton says, unfolding the note with trembling fingers.

“Then that means it must have reached Sophia,” Wilbur says. “This must be her letter.”

As Anton reads it, eyes taking in every word with utmost focus, they begin to water. Charlie keeps a hand on his grandfather’s back as Anton deliberates over the final words of the love of his life, torn apart by tragic circumstances.

The Elysian Box is not cursed, nor is it diabolical. It is merely a vessel carrying the essence of a strong love across time and space, reaching its intended recipient no matter how long it would take.

“I see.” A single tear rolls down Anton’s cheek as he folds the letter once more, slipping it back into the secret compartment of the Box. He angles his face towards the sky, toward the red swell of the sun. “It seems that I can’t join you yet, Sophia dear. There’s someone else on this earth” – he nods at Charlie – “that I have to get to know first.”

And thus, the curtain to the mystery of the Elysian Box draws to a close.

*

[“I can’t](https://layton.fandom.com/wiki/Puzzle:The_Elysian_Box?file=DB138.png) believe you guys left me!”

Tubbo looks more annoyed than anything, arms folded, lips pouty.

“Well, it wasn’t by choice,” Wilbur says, scratching his head. “You had your fun with the cows, didn’t you?”

“And the bees,” Tubbo huffs.

“Have you seen this, Wilbur?” Tommy says, shoving his phone in Wilbur’s face. “‘Dr Nook has awakened from his death-like slumber.’”

“Oh, yeah, I have. That’s why we’re visiting him now.”

“Wait, what? I thought you had a symposium or something that you have to be at,” Tubbo says, an incredulous expression on his face.

“Well, I certainly can’t put this off. One of it will have to go.”

The bus continues to roll along the busy London streets, none of these people aware of what just went on in the ghost town of Folsense. The Molentary Express had taken both Anton and Charlie (and the housekeeper…turns out she’d been real the whole time too) back to Dropstone, where they’d be taken care of by the wonderful townspeople. Meanwhile, Sam Nook had recovered from the experience, entirely unscathed, much to Wilbur’s relief.

Tommy glances out the window, passing by Midland Street. Out of the corner of his eye, he spies a building under construction, a large clock fixed to its exterior. That’s a strange little shop, he thinks, before the bus passes it by, making its way straight for Sam Nook’s condominium.

Where will their next adventure take them, he wonders. Would it be as singular as the adventure of the curious village and that of the diabolical box?

Only time will tell.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Puzzle(s) in this Chapter:   
> The Elysian Box


	10. Puzzle Solutions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> solutions!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> All sorted by chapter! Hope you enjoyed them! 
> 
> read on for more puzzles i enjoyed from this game! couldn't put all of them in this fic...

**Chapter 1**

Nook's Home: 

**Chapter 2**

Red Caps: 

Since we know that not all children received a red balloon, there must be some children who's seen fewer than 4 red caps. Furthermore, the children cannot see their own caps. Therefore, the number of children wearing red caps must be four. Five and all children will receive a red balloon. Three and none of the children would have received a red balloon. 

Moving Day: 

Step 1: Bring the 1- and 2-hour horses over.   
Step 2: Ride your 1-hour horse back.   
Step 3: Ride out on your 4- and 6-hour horses  
Step 4: Return on your two-hour horse.  
Step 5: Ride the last two horses to point B to finish in 13 hours

Tommy's Big Lunch: 

The $12, $16, $17 and $25 food

**Chapter 3**

The Winning Arrow: 

World's Best Golfer: 

2 hits because the golfer hits in an isosceles triangle towards the goal. No one said that he had to putt in a straight line! 

Misinformootion: 

B and D are Troomoo cows and A, C and E are Nowhey cows.

**Chapter 4**

The Door's Code: 

The symbols go in this order from left to right, top to bottom: circle, X, triangle, star, moon

Smell the Roses:

Where's the Hotel?:

**Chapter 5**

Plaza Puzzle:

Top of the Tower:

There's no way you can see the top of the tower from where you're standing as long as there's a ceiling above your head! 

Walking the Dog: 

The dog runs for the entire time it takes for the father to catch up with his daughter. Since the daughter has a 10-metre head start and her dad gains on her at a rate of 1-metre per second, he'll catch up in 10 seconds. The dog is running at a rate of 5-metres per second, so the answer must be 50 metres.

Inspector Halo's Route: 

**Chapter 7**

Maze of Doors: 

That cyan door has to change its direction! 

The Gear Switch: 

The Old Safe: 

This is a standard game of Mastermind! The answer is 0154.

Light the Way

A Rickety Bridge

**Chapter 8**

Sharing Paintings: 

A simple problem of calculation: 

The Fake Coins: 

You only need to use the scale once. From every bag, remove the number of coins indicated by the bag's number. Then you just weigh these 15 coins once. If all of the coins were real, their combined weight would be 150 grams, but you'll end up with a weight less than this. The difference between this actual weight and 150 grams corresponds to the number on the bag of fake coins.

The Hidden Door:

One True Sword:

Remember. A true knight keeps his sword in hand.

**Epilogue**

The Elysian Box:

"The sun rises when you and I meet, and when the wind blows, you will know my heart."

Move the two people such that they're facing each other (when you and I meet), and slide the sun above them (the sun rises). Then, blow into it (when the wind blows), and the box will open (you will know my heart) 


	11. More Puzzles

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> more puzzles

**Dining Couples:**

Four couples sit in a crowded dining car. All diners are sitting next to or across from their partners:

  * The Joneses are sitting by the aisle.
  * The moustachioed Mr O'Connor is sitting next to his wife.
  * Mr Lambert is sitting opposite his wife.



Using the information above, can you determine where Mrs Hadley is sitting?

**Stacked Glasses:**

The owner of a four-star restaurant assigns a young waiter the task of stacking glasses in a decorative way. Eager to please, the waiter immediately draws five separate designs and shows them to the owner. The owner takes one glance at the designs and, with a look of irritation, turns to the boy and cries, "This design is preposterous! What were you thinking?"

Which of the five designs is the owner talking about?

**Clouds and Sky**

A man on the train shows you a picture he's painted.

"Let's say this picture has a total area of 10. Can you work out how much of it is made up of clouds compared to the area that's made up of sky? Don't think you need to guess the answer. There's a definite method you can use to work this out."

How much of the area is sky and how much is cloud?

**The Worker Ant**

Busy ants work tirelessly carrying food back to their nest. One such ant was returning with food when she bumped into an acquaintance in front of the nest. "What are you playing at? Didn't you notice that you took the longest path possible back to the nest? Think about where you're going next time!"

Knowing that the ant never travelled on the same path twice, can you trace the route the returning ant walked to get to her nest?

**Pass the Apples**

Johnny and Thomas are each carrying some apples. If Johnny gave Thomas one apple, the two men would each have the same number of apples. Conversely, if Thomas gave Johnny two apples, Johnny would have three times the number of apples that Thomas has.

So, just how many apples are each of the men holding?

**Board Splitter 1**

Here we have an oddly shaped board.

Since this board is rather unwieldy as it is, you've decided to cut it into two pieces and rejoin these pieces to form a square.

Assuming you aren't allowed to flip either of the pieces over once the board is cut, where should you make the cut in order to make a square out of the pieces?

**A Royal Show-Off**

In a far-off country, there's a king whose favourite pastime is showing off the latest possessions he's collected. The subjects of the kingdom are forbidden from purchasing new items until the king has owned them for a month or so. Only once he's tired of his new purchase can the common folk finally buy that item for themselves.

However, the other day, the king bought a new item that had him all but commanding his subjects to buy one as soon as possible. Which item is it? 

**Painting the Flag**

You have a pristine white flag that you want to dye into three sections as shown below. You have three dyes.

No two adjacent sections of the flag can be the same colour, each section can only be one colour and you can't change the number or size of these sections.

If you aren't allow to mix the dyes, how many distinct flag designs are possible?

**Stones in a Vase**

"This vase holds 101 stones, each identical in size and feel. There are 50 black stones and 51 white stones. Now, put on this blindfold, reach in, and pull out as many stones as you like. When you're finished, if you've removed an equal number of black and white stones, you'll receive a number of gold coins equal to the number of stones you pulled out."

How many stones should you remove to give yourself the best chance of getting the most money possible?

**Flower Bed Fun**

Here are four circular flower beds, each with a radius of 10 metres. The way they're arranged forms a space between them. Can you find the area, in metres squared, of the section coloured red below?

Ignore the width of the border around the flower beds when calculating your answer.

**A Fair Compensation**

Three houses face a single common field. The heads of these three houses, A, B and C, decide to work together to seed the field. Unfortunately, C injures himself just before work starts, so A and B do all the work together. To seed the entire field, A works five days and B works four.

Feeling guilty, C decides to pay A and B for doing his part of the job. To thank them, C pays them a total of nine coins, divided up according to how much work each person did. Can you work out how many coins A and B each received?

**The Scholar's Life**

The following words are written on a famous mathematician's grave.

"Following the 1/6th of my life I spent as a child, I spent 1/12th of my life as a young man. Then, 1/7th of my life later, I got married. Five years after I wed, I was blessed with a child, but sadly, he only lived half the time I was alive before passing away. Today, four years after his death, I too will depart from this world."

Can you work out how many years the mathematician lived?

**Colin's Score**

Four students took a test where every question had two possible answers, A or B. Each question was worth 10 points, for a total of 100 points. The students' test results were posted as seen below, but the teacher forgot to tally Colin's score. Colin was heading to the teacher's office when Mary called him back, saying they could figure out his score using the results from the other tests. Can you figure out Colin's score?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> solutions on the next chapter!


	12. More Puzzle Solutions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> solutions for puzzles on the previous chapter!

**Dining Couples**

Moustachioed Mr O'Connor is sitting next to his wife, so all the people on the left must be sitting be sitting next to their spouses. Mr Lambert is sitting opposite his wife, so he must be sitting at the right-hand table.

The Joneses are sitting by the aisle, so they must be c and g. That leaves e and f as the Hadleys.

**Stacked Glasses**

The 2D sketch didn't take the rim of the cup into account

**Clouds and Sky**

The key here is to use the screws on the frame to divide the picture. Once you do that, it should be clear that B and F, C and I, D and G, and E and H are all simply pairs of the same drawings with the colours reversed. This means that in these eight areas there are 4 squares' worth of cloud and 4 of sky. The remaining two squares, A and J, are completely blue, so the totals are 6 squares of sky and 4 squares of cloud.

**The Worker Ant**

**Pass the Apples**

Johnny has seven apples and Thomas has five. If Johnny gave Thomas one apple, both men would have six apples. Additionally, if Thomas decided to give Johnny two of his apples, Johnny would have nine apples in total, three times as many as Thomas.

**Board Splitter 1**

**A Royal Show-Off**

It has to be the telephone! There's no fun using a telephone if you're the only one who has it! 

**Painting the Flag**

There are 36 variations! 

Once you incorporate the white colour of the unpainted flag into your designs, you actually have four colours you can work with. If you assign a colour to the left section of the flag and list all designs possible, you get a total of nine variations.

Multiply this number by four, which represents the number of colours at your disposal, to get the answer: 36.

**Stones in a Vase**

If you remove 100 stones from the vase, only one will remain inside. If that remaining stone is white, it means you've successfully removed 50 stones of each colour. Of course, removing just two stones would give you the same chance of winning the coins as removing 100 stones, but the amount of money you receive for successfully removing 100 stones dwarfs the reward you'd receive for two stones.

**Flower Bed Fun**

The red section has an area of 400 square metres. If you quarter the space between the flower beds and fit the pieces to the circle as shown on the diagram on the right, you can turn the circle into a square. Once you do, the sides of the square will have the same length as the diameter of a single flower bed: 20 metres. Square this number to get the area and your answer.

**A Fair Compensation**

A received six coins and B got three. You might have been tempted to answer five and four coins respectively but that isn't quite correct. A and B both had to work three days to finish their own shares of the work. Since C wanted to pay A and B for the work they did for him, he had to base his payment on the two days of extra work A did and the one day of work B did. Therefore, A should receive twice the pay B did.

**The Scholar's Life**

**Colin's Score**

His score was 60 points!

Based on the results, you may come up with 3 possible answer keys. No matter which one you use, Colin will end up getting 60! 

**Author's Note:**

> Puzzle(s) in this Chapter:  
> Nook's Home


End file.
